Just a Click Away
by Joyful-Sound
Summary: Alternate Universe. When Gabriella finds herself captivated when chatting with a mysterious stranger online, she never could've guessed that she was spilling her most personal thoughts to the one person she dislikes the most... Troy Bolton. Complete.
1. Prologue

**Okay, so this is a story idea I toyed around with for awhile before putting it down. Most HSM characters will make appearances, some being more major than others. **

**I plan for this to be a shorter story than my others, since (from what I've written) it moves along pretty quickly.**

**This is also my first AU fic, and it might not have been, but I decided that if Troy and Gabriella had never truly known each other, it would make the changes in their relationship throughout the story so much more dramatic. :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own HSM in any way. Besides the DVD.**

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**Prologue**

The only noise that could be heard in the advanced human anatomy class was the incessant ticking of the clock. The tile floors amplified the sound, as if telling the already-aware students that that their dismissal from class was just moments away. For Gabriella Montez, scribbling away in her notebook, it had gotten to the point where it was rather agitating.

She sat back in frustration, reading over her notebook. She had finally finished all of the notes that her professor had assigned, but she was not completely satisfied with them. Gabriella had listened to the lecture, however, she had found it more and more difficult as her brain began to drift to different thoughts.

Thoughts that clouded her mind were the Mathematical Theory class report due next week, her morning job at the student break lounge, and much more importantly… _him_.

He was a person that she had found on her college's forum just three months ago while she was trying to find out when an English paper was due that she had preferred not to ask her professor about. She had posted her instant messaging screen name, and he'd responded the next day. Somehow, they found themselves drowned into deep discussions about life, college, and jobs.

She saw it odd to think about him as a friend, since she didn't even know his real name, but in a way, he sort of was. They knew each other as Baskethead and Brainiac. Gabriella, of course, being the Brainiac. She also knew he was relatively smart and was very insightful, plus, he used to play basketball. But as Taylor had said when Gabriella was wondering about who he was, _"Oh, he used to play basketball? Well that narrows it down to... every male in this school!" _

In a way, Taylor was right. Almost every attendant at the University had once played basketball. If you had not been a cheerleader, you had played basketball or been on same sort of acedemics club. Out of all the places Gabriella had visited, she found New Mexico to be particularly focused on basketball.

Snapping her out of her thoughts was her professor--in his usual 'before class dismissal' routine--shuffling some papers on his desk, casually glancing at his watch, and finally cracking a smug smile.

"Class is dismissed," he said quietly, opening the door next to his desk. Gabriella quickly closed her notebook, got up, and made a beeline for the door. Today had been rather long and getting home was the first thing on her mind.

Not paying attention to anything around her, Gabriella didn't notice that at the exact same time, another person was trying to get through the door. In his attempt to pull ahead through the space first, he caught Gabriella off-guard and, with a squeal of surprise, she dropped her notebook. All of the loose paper in it went spilling into the busy hallway.

"Watch it!" She said icily, picking up her papers, knowing instantly who the person was.

"It's not my fault you weren't paying attention, Gabriella," he replied just as coldly, trying to get the stray papers that were dropped in the hallway. Gabriella looked up to stare into a pair of deep blue eyes that almost every girl in high school had fallen for. Except her.

"You could have at least waited all of two seconds for me to get out of the door!" She fired back, getting the final piece of stray paper up off of the floor.

"Again, I say, you could at least pay a bit more attention!" Troy rolled his eyes, storming off in the opposite direction of Gabriella. Spinning hastily on her heel, the aggravated biology major walked out of the science building, mumbling under her breath.

Afternoon spring air greeted her happily as she stormed into the courtyard, towards her dorm room. She let her feet take on auto-pilot while the usual post-Troy thoughts came to mind.

All through high school, the two had certainly not gotten along very well. They hadn't truly gotten to dislike each other until her sophomore year. It was then when she had casually corrected Troy in science and he had responded by shooting her a very dirty look at the end of class. It had offended her, and the war had simply escalated from there.

Gabriella didn't quite understand why she always ended up in some class, particularly the sciences, with Troy Bolton. In high school, he took Advanced Biology I and II, Physics, and Chemistry. She had him in at least one class every year, which was now trailing into her sophomore year in college. Either he was doing this to get on her nerves, or he was smarter than everyone gave him credit for. Gabriella preferred to believe the first one.

The electric hum of the automatic doors greeted her as she strode casually into the lobby of her dorms. The newly remodeled building that served as the girls' dormitories had a welcome atmosphere with paintings of the campus—many painted by students—blended with the tempting aroma of the snack bar made Gabriella happy to call this place home.

Against her will, Gabriella once again let her thoughts drift back to Troy. The one thing that got onto her the most about him was his ability to get practically whatever he wanted simply because he was the star basketball player. If he were having trouble on an assignment, teachers would go out of their way to help him, while her questions could get completely disregarded. Of course, she was only a decathlon student and she would eventually figure the answer out.

Gabriella once again rolled her eyes at the thought.

Apparently, nobody seemed to see him in the eyes she did, because everyone absolutely adored him. Colleges all over the country were scouting him, and it was a huge story in the newspaper about him humbly accepting the offer to go to the University of Albuquerque. Although, the story wouldn't nearly have ticked her off as much if it hadn't covered up the Scholastic Decathlon's fifth state championship in a row.

Coming around back to reality, Gabriella fumbled with her keys as she approached her dorm room door. She opened it quickly; hoping her best friend and roommate Taylor Mckessie wasn't already there. Taylor would sense her bad mood, and Gabriella was in no mood to answer questions. She was actually ready to completely drown herself in her Mathematics Theory class report that she still needed to do.

The main room in her dorm was small—it consisted of a couch facing the back wall, where a TV was propped up on a school provided stand that was between two doors that led to the two bedrooms. On the wall closest to the door was a counter that contained a sink, microwave, cabinets, and a small refrigerator that served as a so-called kitchen. Apart from the mass of post-it note reminders on the opposite wall, the only thing was the door that led to the bathroom.

Gabriella walked through the small living room and into her bedroom, where she threw her notebook on the purple bedspread and pulled out her laptop from underneath the bed. Her room only contained a twin-sized bed and a chest of drawers—which was all it really could hold. A laptop was her top priority when she had gone to college, and thankfully she had saved up enough to get one.

The computer lights flickered as Gabriella pressed the power button. She crawled onto her bed, waiting as the computer warmed up. The brunette smiled happily when the instant messaging log-in screen popped up.

Although she saw that he wasn't online yet, she knew he would be. Humming to herself, she opened up a new typing document, and started digging through her Theory book to start on her report.

Thirty minutes later, she was finishing her first page of her report when she heard the sound of a door opening. Gabriella knew very well that Taylor wasn't there yet; in fact, she knew that the sound came from her very computer. And it made her smile brightly once more.

Clicking into the instant messaging window, her spirits lifted when the user 'baskethead14' was tagged 'Online'.

Before she could click to send the user a message herself, a new instant messaging window popped up.

**Baskethead14: **_Hey Brainiac. How'd your day go?_

Thinking to herself, Gabriella decided that she needed to vent, even if it's just a little, to this person.

**Brainiac824: **_It went okay, until I got into an argument. But since it's really not that important, I guess my day went good._

Gabriella bit her lip before pressing 'enter' on her keyboard. She didn't really want to bring too much attention to the matter, since she would probably forget about the entire ordeal in the morning.

**Baskethead14: **_Don't sell yourself short when it comes to things like that. You know what helps me? I write all of my terrible feelings towards that person in a notebook, crumble it into a ball, and throw it away. _

The comment made Gabriella nod in approval. This is why she had been talking to this person for awhile. He always had some sort of calming way to solve a problem. The only thing that kept her from really wanting to meet him is wondering if it's too good to be true. There were too many risks involved, and she really didn't want to put herself up for danger. Quickly, she typed back a reply.

**Brainiac824: **_I might have to try that sometime…_

Starting to switch between her report and the conversation, she tried not to think about the identity of Baskethead. She knew he went to the University of Albuquerque, but it was strange to think that she could pass him everyday while going to class, and never even notice him.

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**Mmkay. So that was shorter than I planned for it to be; but, hey, I thought this idea would be a nice change from my usual fluff/humor writings. Plus, Troy and Gabriella are just too cute when they argue!**

**So... Who could this mystery baskethead14 be? Hehe. I'm sure most of you already know**

**Review and tell me what you think. CC is always welcome!**


	2. I: Questions

**I changed my penname! Kat convinced me. I just thought that the 'freaky callback girl' phrase from HSM was becoming overused (not that it's bad or anything). But I wanted a new penname that would distinguish myself from the rest. I'm still Picc and I'm still writing. So, no worries.**

**So, once again, this chapter is a small bit on the short side. But it needed to be, because it leaves room for the next chapter. **

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**Chapter I: Questions**

"_Who does she seriously think she is?" _Troy mumbled, walking past the snack bar in the dormitory lounge. He could still feel his blood boiling just minutes after his encounter with Gabriella. "_She's such a know-it-all," _He continued mumbling. Although he was tempted to throw away the papers he'd picked up for Gabriella—who had been too much of a jerk to accept them back—he instead stuffed them in the back of his notebook.

Ever since high school, it seemed that Gabriella Montez just had it out for him. She constantly corrected him during the classes they had together, she always seemed to make him feel like a complete idiot, and she acted as if anything he did was wrong in every sense.

Just because he had found a liking in the sciences didn't mean that he was in those classes just to get on her nerves. He nearly gave up taking advanced classes his freshman year of college just to get away from her.

Troy shook the thoughts out of his head as he unlocked his dorm room door. Throwing it open, he spotted Chad sitting on couch, typing away on Troy's laptop. The encounter with Gabriella and seeing the sight before him caused a surge of anger push through the basketball star.

"Chad!" Troy groaned at his roommate, putting his notebook on the counter on his left. "Do the words 'personal property' ring any sort of bell in your head? It took me ages to save up for that, and you just come in here and use it as you please!"

"Dude, chill," his best friend said defensively. "I didn't log onto your instant messaging account. I just needed to check e-mail. I'm not chatting with _her_." Chad stressed the last word, knowing very well that the mysterious girl was the reason Troy didn't want him on his computer.

"Can I at least have it back?" Troy asked, rolling his eyes, but feeling a sense of relief. There had been a mysterious girl that he'd met on their college forum, and he found himself enjoying their well-into-the-night talks. He didn't know her real name, but he would like to.

"Fine. I'm all done anyway." Chad clicked out of the window, closed the computer, and handed it to Troy. "And judging by your temper, I'm guessing another Gabriella run-in?"

"Uh-huh," Troy nodded.

"Well, it's your fault for taking that class!" Chad reminded his friend as he dug through the small refrigerator. The co-captian knew his best friend a little too well, sensing that only one person could put him in such a defensive mood: Gabriella Montez. Chad remembered the day that a basketball teammate said that he found her attractive, and Troy made it clear that if she ever attended one of their basketball practices, he'd make them go outside and run the remainder of practice.

"What can I say? I enjoy science." Troy responded honestly, snapping Chad out of his high school memories.

"I hope you enjoy basketball more," Chad joked, taking a gulp of a coke he had just retrieved from the top shelf of the refrigerator. "Because we have practice in two hours and I personally would rather listen to pep talk instead of a discussion of human anatomy."

"Coach rescheduled _again_?" Troy sighed in disappointment, wishing that he would be able to have tonight off. "It's almost four in the afternoon, and he relied on you to tell me this?"

"Yeah," Chad shrugged, taking another drink from the soda bottle. "He told me that he trusted me to get it to you."

"You remember the last time he did that?" Troy raised an eyebrow, remembering the time Chad forgot to tell him, and he had to run three miles as punishment for missing practice. He hated being captian, but every year, Chad would nominate him, and he would end up getting everyone's vote.

"Just because I forgot does not mean I'm incapable of trying again," Chad retorted, messing with his mound of hair. "You're just in a crappy mood and you know it."

In response, Troy closed the door to his room, just wanting to escape, also wondering how Chad knew the meaning of 'incapable'. Once inside, the basketball superstar stared at a very messy dorm room. He had never been known for his neatness when it came to living on his own, or even with his parents, for that matter. Troy placed his laptop on his blue bedspread and began his search for his practice jersey.

Clothes were scattered across the floor, and Troy carelessly searched through the mess, scattering clothes in even more directions. Finally, he found it under the mound of clothes that served as his laundry pile. With a displeased look on his face, Troy tossed it back into the pile.

It probably wouldn't be too flattering to go to practice in a jersey that had been in a pile of dirty laundry, so Troy reasoned he would just leave for practice early and get dressed in the locker rooms where he kept an extra practice jersey.

Ready to get online, Troy hopped onto his bed and opened the laptop. He was glad that Chad had left the computer on—it saved him ten minutes of waiting for the computer to boot up. Happily, he clicked into his instant messaging sign-in.

While he was waiting for his computer to sign him online, Troy thought about this mysterious girl. He knew that she went to the University of Albuquerque, and was taking a basics course this year. She had asked for a due date on an assignment in her basics English class, and since he knew the date, he'd responded.

It just went on from there.

Troy would openly admit he'd like to meet her, but he had found that she was very cautious when it came to her safety. That's why they didn't know even each other's names. He understood her reasoning, however, he was still curious. She seemed to be a wonderful person, and he felt compelled to meet her.

Smiling to himself when he saw she was already signed on, Troy quickly typed up a hello message, ready to get his mind off of Gabriella Montez.

_Hey Brainiac. How'd your day go?_

Troy was tempted to mention his earlier stress, but decided against it. Happy with the message, he clicked 'enter', and eagerly awaited her reply.

It turned out her day had been crappy as well, and Troy gave her the only advice that he really knew to give in situations like that. Simply write them an 'I Hate You' letter, then crumble it up and throw them away. He would have done that with Gabriella, but his mood had been dramatically been lifted up by Brainiac.

**Brainiac824: **_I might have to try that…_

It was a moment before Troy typed again, but what he typed even surprised Troy. He didn't want to offend her… but during times like this, he really needed someone other than Chad to talk to in person.

_Do you think we should meet?_

Feeling a mixed sense of relief and dread, he pressed the send key.

**HSMHSMHSMHSM**

Just as a response was being typed, Gabriella heard the door to her dorm room open. She knew it was Taylor. Not looking at the newly typed reply, Gabriella wrote a quick 'be right back' message and walked outside of her room to where Taylor was.

"You're _already_ chatting with him, aren't you?" Taylor asked, throwing her purse on the couch.

"Well, yeah, but I'm also doing my Theory report," Gabriella replied thoughtfully. "Listen, since it's only four o' clock, I thought that maybe in an hour or so we can go grab some pizza, and then maybe and ice cream. I get paid in two days, so my funds say that there's a little room for some fun eating."

"Sound great, Gabriella," Taylor nodded in approval. "And sorry about last time we planned going out to eat. Evan was just so insistent that I work the graveyard shift."

"No problem," Gabriella smiled, going back into her room. Evan Meek was Taylor's boss at the campus supply store. Taylor absolutely hated when he made her work late, especially since nobody goes to the store at three in the morning, but she reasoned that gas prices were just too high for her to drive across the city to get to her job.

Opening her laptop again, Gabriella typed a back message.

**Brainiac824: **_Sorry that took so long. My roommate came home. _

**Baskethead14: **_It's okay. So… what's your answer?_

Confused, Gabriella read scrolled back up the window, and saw the question he'd typed as she had went to greet Taylor.

**Baskethead14: **_Do you think we should meet?_

Gabriella gasped a little, but apparently it was loud enough for Taylor to hear, because her best friend came into the room with a confused look on her face.

"What's wrong?" Taylor blinked, looking at her bewildered friend sitting on the bed. Taylor was clued in by Gabriella's gaze that was transfixed on the screen. She walked closer to her friend, trying to get a peek of the computer screen.

"He… He just asked if we should meet." Gabriella looked at her friend for advice, knowing that this had been coming all along, but had refused to think about it.

"Woah!" Taylor gasped, reading the IM window over Gabriella's shoulder. "I don't know, Gabriella. I mean, I know you're dying to meet him, but… Well, I just don't know. But type back a response. Say something to let him know you're thinking!" Taylor pushed, her thoughts spinning.

Quickly, Gabriella typed in the only thing that she could think of.

**Brainiac824: **_Let me think about it for a second. _

**Baskethead14: **_Okay. _

"Wow," Gabriella said at the quickness of Baskethead's reply. "He must be watching the computer screen like a hawk."

"That means he's just_ dying_ to meet you as well." Taylor nodded in approval, over-dramatizing the middle of the sentence. "Plus, if he had a campus forum account, and only students here can have accounts, so it's unlikely that he's a… er…"

"Yeah, I know," Gabriella cut her friend off, not really wanting to listen to the end of the sentence. "But I just don't know. It might ruin everything. I mean… what if he already knows who I am? What if he turns out to be a complete fake?"

"Well, isn't that the risk you were willing the take the day you started chatting with him?" Taylor challenged, receiving only a shrug from her friend. "Look, you better decide here in a little bit, because I'm ready for pizza, and I need to start getting ready."

"If we do meet, what could we talk about?" Gabriella reasoned.

"What you talk about every time you instant message each other," Taylor winked, striding out of the room.

"But--" Gabriella tried to get more advice from Taylor, but her friend was already ignoring her. In all honesty, Gabriella wanted to meet him. They had so much in common, and there were so many things that they told each other. There were books that the two of them had agreed to read together, there were the study sessions, and there was the smile that she could feel coming when she would talk with him. Or, rather, type messages to him.

Sometimes, she wished she had someone else other than Taylor to talk to. Her mother had suggested a boyfriend, but that was something Gabriella found to be the last thing on her mind while taking so many college classes.

Why put her feelings up for heartbreak when being friends is just good enough? Besides, there were no decent guys that she knew of that seemed interested anyway. Most of them were like Troy Bolton. Big egos, sports maniacs, heartbreakers...

Shuddering at the thought of dating someone like him, Gabriella focused her mind back onto the instant messaging question. Her eyes darted from the text by Baskethead to the blank reply box, with the cursor blinking away, taunting her. It just sat there... blinking, as if trying to rush her thought process. This was a yes or no question. Why was it so hard to answer?

It had only been a few minutes since he'd asked her, but it had already felt like it had been hours. What _should_ she say?

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**Cliffhanger! **

**Please, please, please review your thoughts. I was sort of hoping for a better turnout feedback-wise... Since A Day of Shopping is lower in writing quality than this one, and that story started out a smidge better in feedback than this one has. Not to mention, this story is going to actually contain--/_gasp_/--FLUFF!**

**Anyway, I haven't had much time to write since I've been at band camp all week (and I can just hear every one of you giggling at that thought). I have the next chapter written, but I'm perfecting it for all of you awesome readers. ;)**


	3. II: Less Than 24 Hours

**So, I updated A Day of Shopping, and after I wrote the next chapter of that, expect an update from this story. I've set a goal I have for this story (since I find that it gives me a reason to improve). I've decided my first goal is 50 alert lists (which is half of what A Day of Shopping has now). I'm about fifteen away from that. **

**Anyway, I know you guys are probably mad I left you with a cliffhanger, but I'll warn you--there's many more! This is probably my least favorite chapter of all of the ones I've written so far (I think it might be because of how many IMs and dialogue I included.. I told myself there's only so many parts of a conversation I want to include), so bear with me until the next update.**

**

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Chapter II: Less Than 24 Hours**

_Yes._

Gabriella drew in a deep breath, clicking the send button as fast as she could, not wanting to leave a second that could offer opportunity to chicken out. The brunette's hands were still shaking uncontrollably.

**Baskethead14: **_Awesome. When? Where? You pick. _

Realizing for the first time that there was more than just saying 'okay, let's meet' to this ordeal, Gabriella brainstormed a few ideas. It needed to be someplace where everybody went… Gabriella was still a bit skeptical about meeting him where nobody is around.

Maybe they could meet somewhere on campus? Gabriella bit her lip. Then, the perfect place hit her.

**Brainiac824: **_How about Friday (tomorrow)? Around eight in the evening. I work at the campus coffee lounge, and I'll be working the counter._

**Baskethead14: **_Sounds great. But, how will I know it's you working the counter? I mean, you never know. Someone else could be there as well._

Thinking, Gabriella wondered what she could do to distinguish her from the rest of her co-workers, without giving off too many hints as to what was going on. Spotting a hardback copy of her favorite book on her dresser, she realized how she would pull this off.

**Brainiac824: **_Remember that book that I told you was my favorite? _

**Baskethead14: **_A Rose for Melinda? I read that. It was great… I've never been one to enjoy love stories, but this one was really touching. _

Her heart fluttered, seeing as he remembered a small detail that she had once told him, and he'd even gone as far as reading the book.

**Brainiac824: **_Yeah. I'll have that in the pocket of my waitress apron. And I'm glad you enjoyed it:)_

**Baskethead14: **_Great. I'll see you then. I have to go now (roommate pulling me out the door). See you tomorrow. _

Sighing happily, Gabriella couldn't believe how quickly that had gone. In the movies, when things like this happened, people seemed to have to take hours planning out something like that. This had only taken ten minutes.

The brainiac sat back on her bed, thinking about what this mysterious person looked like. From what she had gathered, his hair was long enough to cause him to get snapped at by his grandmother about a haircut, but not long enough to pull it back. He was pretty much in shape, since he had mentioned going to the weight room at one point. She tried to picture him in her head, but she still really couldn't.

"So, is it all arranged?" Taylor came into the room, brushing her hair. The comment had snapped her best friend out of her daydream.

"How do you even know I said yes?" Gabriella raised an eyebrow, looking at her friend standing in the doorway. Taylor had already changed into a different pair of jeans and a sky blue V-neck top. Taylor was ready to go.

"Because I know you," Taylor responded sarcastically. Gabriella groaned and threw a pillow propped on her bed at Taylor. It took her friend by surprise, the pillow hitting its target square in the face. Gabriella smirked, proud of her perfect aim of the pillow.

"Ouch! That hurt!" Taylor pouted then threw the pillow back, folding her arms across her chest. Her expression changed from pouting to amusement from the scene unfolding before her.

"Tay!" Gabriella dodged the pillow and—although it missed her head—it skimmed the edge of her hair, tangling the long curls. "Now I have to redo my hair!"

"Good. Because while you're at it, you're going to change, too." Taylor smiled, noting Gabriella's old East High Scholastic Team t-shirt that her friend had on.

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" Gabriella asked, getting off her spot on the bed and heading to the bathroom. Taylor followed, feeling like being a little critical of Gabriella. Sometimes, that girl needed to be reminded that other people actually take into account what she was wearing.

"It's so… _high school-ish_." Taylor replied, wrinkling her nose as if wearing an old high school t-shirt was a crime.

"Since when did you become fashion police chief? I always thought that was Sharpay Evans' job," Gabriella replied sarcastically, picking up her brush from the counter in the bathroom.

"First off, I am not near as bad as that girl," she cringed, remembering how the overly dramatic blonde would constantly correct everyone's fashion errors—right down to not wearing a matching watch. "And second, I just want you to look halfway decent incase we spot some… _handsome _fellows." Taylor concluded, emphasizing the word 'handsome'.

"I'm not the one to be looking for _fellows_ right now. So, I'll just wear my university hoodie over this," Gabriella rolled her eyes, finishing up on her hair. "It's, like, what everyone on campus is wearing!" She joked, mocking a cheerleader voice.

"Because, like, everyone has one!" Taylor mocked back, following her friend out of the bathroom.

"Like, oh my gosh! You're not serious?" Gabriella turned around, bringing her hand to her mouth while she gasped. The two friends couldn't help but break down laughing upon looking each other in the eye.

"We've been to one _too_ many parties!" Taylor said between breaks in her laughter. Gabriella just responded by bursting into giggles once more, collapsing on the couch and holding her stomach in laughter. She felt frivolous, and acting immature at times lightened the intense college mood that normally hung over the dorm room.

In a few minutes, the laughter subsided and the girls' stomachs began doing most of the talking. The two friends walked through the twisted pathways of the campus, keeping their eye on the pizza parlor that sat across the street.

"You know, he could be anyone," Gabriella pointed out, letting her thoughts talk. "Like that guy." She pointed to a student sitting comftorably on a bench on the edge of the campus, his eyes hidden behind a crop of dark hair that fell against his face. He was intently looking down at a notebook, scribbling notes on clean sheets of paper.

"Or… That guy," Taylor pointed to another guy, running behind a building in what looked like a bed sheet. "Toga party, much?"

"I'm sure the guy I've been chatting with has more dignity than that!" Gabriella shook her head is disgust, trying not to think of that guy as the mysterious Baskethead. "Personally, I see him as more of a shy type. You know, someone that doesn't try to take the spotlight."

"Mmhmm," Taylor giggled as the two reached the crosswalk that would take them in a beeline to the pizza parlor. "Well, just be weary that he might not be everything that you imagined."

"I know that. I mean, isn't that the story of every guy that we've ever dated?" Gabriella skipped ahead of Taylor as the two crossed the street, her friend giggling in response.

"Yeah, like our prom dates!" Taylor called ahead, remembering the two dates to their senior prom that both had a very difficult time understanding that prom was aimed for dancing, not making out in a janitor's closet. Gabriella giggled back and slid her purse back on her shoulder, opening the door. The smell of melted mozzarella cheese and fresh-baked dough floated to the friends, each giving a sigh of content upon the warm aromas.

Approaching the counter, Gabriella stared at the colorful pictures of the lighted menu, trying to think of what could satisfy both her and Taylor's growing hunger.

"What about the stuffed crust?" Gabriella asked, with Taylor making a face that said she wasn't too pleased.

"No! Last time I had that, it made the crust taste funky," Taylor explained, trying to decide on what seemed like endless possibilities for a pizza. The two continued to argue over what they would get, until they settled on a small, plain pepperoni pizza with breadsticks.

The two girls sat eating at a booth in the back corner, where the conversation finally slid back to the subject of dating.

"I mean, seriously, are there _any_ decent guys out there?" Taylor stuffed a breadstick in her mouth, taking in the garlic taste from the seasoning drizzled on top of the bread.

"Yeah. I was thinking that earlier. Most of the guys around here are either like Troy Bolton or his little wannabe fans." Gabriella took a bite of an extra cheesy piece of pizza. The cheese was thick, so when she tried to pull the bite of cheese off, the entire top of the pizza slid off.

Taylor burst into giggles, while Gabriella blushed heavily and tried to quickly put the toppings back on. Once she began taking much smaller bites, Taylor resumed the conversation.

"Well, it's not like you don't think Troy is hot." Her friend said bluntly, sipping her soda. Gabriella felt her mouth fall open at the comment, nearly choking on her latest bite of breadstick.

"Are you _kidding_ me?" She said disgusted. "He's the complete opposite of what I look for in a guy."

"Now Gabriella," Taylor wagged her finger. "Just because he's a total jerk doesn't mean he's not cute. I mean, his friend that tags along with him is pretty cute in my opinion."

"I'm not going to comment on that," Gabriella shook her head, wanting desperately to change the subject. "So, any projects you need to finish up?"

"Actually…" Taylor began, not noticing Gabriella sighing in relief. She knew that her friend could talk on and on about her never ending projects when it came to her nursing class.

**HSMHSMHSMHSM**

"Attention! Troy Bolton is meeting his mystery girl in less than twenty-four hours. Let me make my self completely clear: less than twenty-four hours, people!" Chad strode around the gym happily, getting calls of 'Ooh!' directed as his blushing friend as he entered the gym.

"Is everyone keeping tabs on my personal life nowadays?" Troy ran a hand through his hair, unaware up until this point that anyone but Chad knew of Brainiac.

"No, just your love life," Chad shrugged, getting an eruption of laughter from the team.

"Yeah, lets see how funny you think that is after we run two miles today for practice!" Troy threw back, finally getting his teammates to quite down. He didn't see how Chad considered it his love life, but he didn't feel like arguing back, since typically Chad was clueless of about half the things he talked about.

"So, are we drilling today?" Jason asked, trying to break the silence.

"I was actually planning to condition…" Troy thought aloud, receiving groans from the team members. "But, since Coach won't be here today, and I'm in charge, we'll just drill." Sighs of relief echoed through the large gym.

The boys sorted into pairs, starting the warm up routine, and Troy ended up being paired with Jason. As they tossed the ball to each other as an exercise to touch up on their quick thinking, his teammate tried to casually start a conversation about the mysterious Internet girl.

"So, has she shown you any pictures?" Jason asked, tossing the ball back to Troy. Troy paused as he caught it, not wanting to respond with a corny answer.

"No. She's pretty skeptical when it comes to her safety," he sighed, dribbling the ball around.

"I see. So, most of what Chad said was completely wrong?" Jason chuckled, trying to steal the ball Troy was dribbling.

"Most likely," Troy shrugged, turning around from Jason who made a grab for the basketball. He didn't really feel like answering all of the questions, but since Chad had apparently told most of the team complete lies, he felt it better to tell the truth to Jason. Deeply in thought, Troy wasn't paying enough attention to stop Jason from stealing the ball.

"Apparently you're nervous, because in your normal state of mind, you would have never let me steal that ball from you!" Jason smirked, spinning the newly captured ball on his thumb.

"Not nervous… I'm just still thinking," Troy defended absentmindedly. Seeing the clock propped up on the wall, he saw that they had gone about fifteen minutes over what the warm-ups should normally take. "Okay guys!" He began, calling his teammates to the center of the court. "We've got a lot to do today…"

Glad that his teammates had actually made an attempt to learn the new drills the coach had made for them yesterday, Troy performed the plays over and over again. Finally, the first two drills were perfect. There was one more left, but Troy let the team have a much-appreciated water break before they started on it.

Questions kept coming in, and at all opportunities, Troy would send his roommate a dirty glare, because most of the questions came from the things that Chad had been telling the group. He wouldn't bring attention to the matter, but he knew this would be one of those 'just wait until we get back to the dorm!' type of arguments.

He simply tried his best not to talk to Chad. This new knowledge of him giving the team false updates on Brainiac really got on Troy's nerves. He knew he'd get mad, and it was probably best just not to think about it until he had a chance to sit down and get Chad's side of the story.

Once the final drill was completed, which also concluded practice for the day, Troy quickly made his way to the locker room. The rows of lockers were decorated with posters and words of encouragement to the team. The showers had their own room, which was to the left of his locker.

The team began trickling in, talking about the upcoming scrimmage in the next week. Most of them were very pepped up for it, since the team they played would be easy to beat, and with these new plays, the team felt undefeatable. It was already the end of the basketball season, but the teams from other in-state campuses would agree to skrimmage to keep up with the competition while the season was over.

After Troy was changed, he tried to get out before anyone wanted to talk to him. He was more interested in getting back to his dorm and back online than he wanted to be chatting with teammates. However, he didn't quite manage that. When he reached the door to the gym, Jason stopped him. Jason apparently hadn't been to the locker room yet. He was still in his warm up gear, with sweat running down the side of his face.

"Hey, I was wondering if you still need help on that Anatomy assignment," he asked casually, throwing a towel over his shoulder. It seemed like he'd been waiting for Troy.

"No," Troy replied, a little too quickly. "I'll find someone in class. It's not due until next week." He shrugged. Jason had taken the class last year, and he was a very capable teacher. But Troy shrugged it off, hoping the teacher would be able to give him some help the next day. "Oh, but would you try to tell the guys not to listen to anything Chad says about this girl?"

"Sure. I'll get it around." Jason smiled, waving at his team captain as he walked out the door.

Troy saw the sun setting, hues of burnt orange and yellow blending into the darkening sky. Troy stopped under a tree, observing the sunset. Chad's words came back to him, and he now felt the intensity and importance of tomorrow.

Just twenty-four hours, and he would be coming face to face with the person that he felt he had such a connection with.

* * *

**So... I'm sort of feeling that this story is getting a little boring. I mean... would you guys like a little more humor in it? Is it moving too quickly? I don't plan to have Troy and Gabriella hate each other for the remainder of the story (that wouldn't be very interesting). This story also isn't going to end at the six or seven chapters that I thought it would. I just finished writing chapter seven, which is the point of the story when I think it could be considered the middle.**

**Anyway, I'm looking to see what you guys think so far about this story. Any comments about the writing and such, because there haven't been many lately, and I'd really like to know what everyone so far has thought about this story compared to my others. Better? More boring? Needs work?**

**Seriously. Don't be afraid to tell me ;)**


	4. III: It's Gabriella Montez

**I'm back from Disney World, with a WHOLE BUNCH of ideas. This story will finish up at around eleven chapters (the way I plan it). I have to write two more, and I'm done. **

**This is my favorite chapter so far. I absolutely flew right through writing this one. **

**

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Chapter III: It's Gabriella Montez**

_Tap…Tap…Tap…_

Someone was clicking a pencil on his or her desk right in time with the seconds ticking on the clock. The room was filled of boredom, and also with the usual 'before class ends' anticipation. Gabriella, once again, found herself scribbling in her notebook. She had gotten done with her notes early, and doodling seemed to be the only thing that she found herself doing in her spare time. Which happened to be particularly at the end of her anatomy class.

Her professor, moving like clockwork, was once again going over his dismissal routine. Gabriella had found the day to go extremely slowly, which typically happened when she was excited. Boy, was she excited about tonight.

The thought of meeting him brought butterflies to her stomach. Although she was ecstatic about the meeting, she felt apprehensive about knowing who he was. Would they find out that they had nothing in common? Would she get angry with a guy that she spilled some of her most personal thoughts to? Could—

"Class is dismissed," her professor said quietly, stopping Gabriella's thoughts in their tracks. Like usual, the students began to file out of the classroom. Out of the ordinary, though, Gabriella was caught unready for the release. Papers were still askew across her desk, her notebook wasn't put up, and her pencil was still in her hand. Hastily, she shoved all of the items in her backpack, not noticing that she wasn't the only student left in the room.

Troy had lagged behind, going up to the professor's desk with his hands shoved into his jean pockets.

"Excuse me, sir, I would like to know if you could help me on the objective eight assign—"

"No, I'm too busy to help anyone right now," the gray-haired man put his hand to his forehead. "Tell you what… uh…" He looked across the room, seeing the perfect candidate stuffing papers in her backpack. "Montez, would you help Bolton here on objective eight?"

"But Professor—" the two began, Gabriella looking up in disbelief, only to be cut off. With a sinking feeling, she realized that his statement was not really aimed as a question. It was more of an order.

"Bolton's scholarship depends on his grades being high. You're the brightest student in here. You teach him," The professor eyed the two twenty-year-olds. "I hope there's no problems," he finished in a dangerous tone.

Sighing in defeat, Gabriella knew that there was no getting out of this. Troy got special treatment again, but her problems were just pushed aside. Troy shifted around uneasily and left the classroom while Gabriella finished putting her things away.

She briskly walked out of the classroom; seeing it was essential to catch up with Troy. She needed to schedule a study time, although she wasn't too happy about it. She was rather agitated about the sudden arrangement, to begin with.

Finding him already halfway down the hall, Gabriella ran, catching up with him. He appeared to be expecting her, since he didn't seem to pay her much mind as she approached.

"If you're thinking I have time tonight to do this, then you're quite mistaken," she began shortly, slowing her stride to match his.

"Good, because I have plans," he eyed her, seeing a cold glare in her eyes. She must have a hot date tonight, although Troy didn't quite understand why anyone would be attracted to the snob. "Look, I'll just get someone else to help me."

"No," Gabriella replied simply, having an odd feeling that one of them might not make it through this study session alive. "Because if you fail, then it's my fault. And, although playing favorites or holding grudges is wrong, I have no doubt that our professor will not like me if he ends up failing you on the upcoming test."

"Fine," Troy rolled his eyes, opening the door leading to the school courtyard, trying to keep his eyes ahead of him. "How about tomorrow morning? Eleven o' clock sharp?"

"Okay by me," Gabriella finished. Troy knew from the tone that, like predicted, it was far from okay by her. But he needed help, and she was being too stubborn to argue with. What other choice would he have? Fail the test and lose the scholarship?

"You live on campus?" Troy asked the now-silent Gabriella.

"Yes," she replied, as if he should have already known. "McCormick Hall. Number 109."

"So, I guess I'll see you tomorrow." Troy said, turning to look at Gabriella. She was looking forward, her hair coming down in loose curls around her tanned face. Her eyelashes fluttered in the afternoon sunlight, whereas Gabriella was snapping her head around to face Troy. He was looking at her with the infamous attractive blue eyes that were enough to simply drown in.

The feeling both had just felt was unwillingly. It had been a simple glance… But it was turning into so much more. He was staring at her, understanding for the first time since his sophomore year why guys seemed attracted to her. Gabriella, experiencing the same first-time moment, was seeing past the agitated basketball player in his eyes.

Caught completely off-guard, both Troy and Gabriella stepped back, unsure of how to handle the unexpected barrier. Had she just caught Troy staring at her? Had she really thought of his eyes as even the least bit attractive?

"I… I guess I will see you tomorrow," she shook her head, spinning hurriedly on her heel. She walked as quickly as she could through the curved path leading to her dorm, in the opposite direction of the person she was to tutor in a day, completely caught up in what had just happened.

Troy, left standing dumbfounded, never saw something that bewildering coming. Earlier he had wondered who could ever have been attracted to someone like her, and now, watching her walk away, he couldn't believe what he had just experienced.

Refusing to admit it was infatuation, he pushed the thoughts to the back of his mind. Brainiac should be the only one on his mind, not Gabriella. It was a mere heat-of-the-moment feeling.

Shaking his head, he began walking back to his dorm. He realized that now, Gabriella Montez was beginning to stir up much more than anger within him…

**HSMHSMHSMHSM**

"Is somebody getting all dressed up for a certain someone?" Taylor strolled into the bathroom, catching her friend as she caught a quick glimpse in the mirror. Gabriella had put on a ruffled denim skirt, a plain red tank top—spiced up with sparkling beads along the edge—and a little bit more make-up than she normally wore. Her natural curls were pulled back on one side by a barrette, shaping the sides of her face.

"I am not… My boss has always wanted to see me dress up," Gabriella said, making a completely unconvincing excuse for Taylor. Although still a bit miffed at her friend, she didn't feel like fighting right now. She had done that already today with Troy.

She hadn't confided to Taylor about her experience with Troy that afternoon. But, she had told her that she had a study date with Troy, and Taylor had replied with 'Ooh, a date?' which caused Gabriella to reminisce of that afternoon. She then felt a surge of anger, rising her blood to the boiling point, and wordlessly gone to her room to get ready for work.

"Yeah, right," Taylor replied in the 'I-don't-believe-you-for-a-second' tone. "Anyway, I'm sorry about earlier. About you and Troy and your study… um… session." She shrugged.

"No problem," Gabriella sighed, feeling an awkward silence coming. To prevent it, she started talking with one of the two things that was on her mind. "What should I say to him, Taylor?"

"Troy or Baskethead?" Taylor asked, not thinking that they were completely over the Troy conversation.

"Baskethead." Gabriella answered, applying a final splash of Cherry Blossom scent to her upper body. She knew what she'd do about Troy—simply forget about it. She'd be back to hating him tomorrow. Especially if Taylor would be working and it would just be the two of them… completely alone.

"Be yourself," Taylor answered truthfully. "It's the best charm a girl can give. Good luck." She smiled at her friend, who was nervously glancing one final time in the mirror.

"Thanks, Tay." Gabriella walked over to her friend in the doorway, embracing the person that she'd known since her elementary years.

"No problem." She said, returning the hug. "Now, get going! You're going to be late for work!"

Chuckling, Gabriella grabbed her purse and car keys, said a final goodbye to Taylor, and rushed down to her car. Her book was sitting on the driver's seat of the silver mustang, an assurance to Gabriella that she wouldn't forget it.

She arrived promptly at six-thirty, fifteen minutes earlier than when she usually got there. The coffee house was about two blocks away from the campus, but it was normally referred to as the campus coffee lounge, considering its only real customers were college students.

Feeling the warm atmosphere of the dimly lit restaurant, Gabriella inhaled deeply to smell of concocting mocha mixtures. The scent tickled her nose, getting progressively stronger as she approached the counter. As she was putting on her apron, a co-worker noticed her jubilant smile.

"Someone must've just gotten some really good news," Kelsi Neilson whistled, coming out from behind the counter with three mugs of what seemed to be hot chocolate.

"You could say that…" Gabriella said, pulling on her apron. She set the pink hard cover book in one of the pockets meant for storing tips in the apron. That was one thing she loved about the coffee house—the apron was your only uniform.

"Love the skirt," Kelsi commented, coming back from delivering the order. "You're working counter tonight… Correct?" the music major asked.

"Correct," Gabriella confirmed, taking out her order notepad, getting ready for the event that would happen in an hour and a half.

The busy hours came along, which was from about six-thirty to around seven forty-five. Anxiously, Gabriella was peering out of the broad windows that dotted the walls. She saw a few couples walking by, a lady with her dog, a bald man reading a newspaper… not many of them looked like university students.

She sighed, watching the clock tick past 8:05.

**HSMHSMHSMHSM**

"I'm so late!" Troy yanked open the car door, placing the delicate rose he'd bought earlier in his backpack. He wanted to surprise Brainiac. "I can't believe I let you talk me into letting you drive me here!"

"You're only five minutes late," Chad replied nonchalantly, looking at his watch. "Plus, I wasn't going to let my best bud go on this alone. I'll just take a look at who she is, then leave."

"Promise?" Troy groaned, not really wanting Chad to come inside and eat with him. Troy pulled the backpack over his shoulders, hoping that the rose wouldn't be damaged. It actually was the only thing in the folds of fabric, so it should be okay.

"Promise." Chad assured. "I'm sure she'd be willing to take you home. But, if you don't want to ask, just call the dorm. I'll go straight there right after I leave." Troy nodded, grateful for once for his friend. He had long gotten over the entire ordeal with Chad from basketball practice. He always did.

"Just… No more rumors," Troy warned, trying to cover up the antsy mood he was in.

"Fine," Chad shrugged; smirking at the two approached the coffee house entrance. Troy felt his heartbeat speed up along with feeling his palms start to sweat. He had never met the girl, but he was sensing that the feelings that were coming were like his mood before his first date.

"What if she's hot?" Troy asked, seemingly out of nowhere. The thought had just occurred to him… What if she was? Would he be compelled to ask her on a date? Would he have enough courage? Chad laughed at his friend's question.

"Then you have a date for the party next week," Chad winked, wanting to peer inside the coffee house. They were standing outside of the steps, Troy holding back the last bits of nervous jabbers.

"What if she's one of my ex-girlfriends?" Troy bit his lip. "What if--"

"I highly doubt she will be one of them," Chad shook his head. "Those girls are not very insightful and reading-savvy, if you get what I mean. Now, how about I look in first?" Chad asked, peering around the steps and inside the store.

"Do you see the person at the counter?" Troy pressed, turned around, trying desperately to think of whom he knew that worked at the coffee house. Maybe he knew her already.

"There're two girls, both about our age," Chad squinted, trying to find one of them that seemed to fit the personality of what Troy had described. Both of them did. They were moving around, giving Chad only glances of their faces. One was a brunette, feverishly cleaning the counter, while the other was pulling back her short red hair by the expresso machine.

"Brainiac has a pink hard back book in her pocket," Troy replied, tempted to turn around, run inside, and stare at the one of the girls Chad was talking about.

"Oh! I see her now!" Chad squinted, trying to get a good look at the girl at the counter. He let out a small gasp when he realized exactly who she was. What scared him the most was that she actually looked stunning. She was, no-doubt, very pretty; and this was the girl that Troy might be considering as future girlfriend material. The same girl that he couldn't stand to be in the same room with.

"Describe her. Is she cute?" Troy was nearly to the point of biting his nails. The air had grown very humid, not helping Troy's sweating palms.

"It depends on what you call cute," Chad blinked, at a loss for words. "She's a brunette, petite, tanned. She looks to be a mix of races. She's got a big smile. Under her apron, she's wearing a really sparkly red tank top. She doesn't seem to be wearing an overload of makeup."

"That's all?" Troy looked blankly at his friend, wondering why Chad was being so uneasy about the subject. "Do… do I already know her?"

"Yeah, you do know her," Chad confessed, glancing back into the coffee house. The girl was looking at the clock placed on the opposite wall, with a sparkling glint to her hopeful chocolate brown eyes.

"Well, who is it?" Troy pressed on, feeling that his friend was not answering quick enough. His thoughts were moving at one hundred miles an hour, just trying to comprehend who could be the one person that seemed to understand everything he said. Chad took a deep breath, looking up uneasily at his friend.

"It's Gabriella Montez."

* * *

**Mmm. I'm sorry if you felt it was switching times too much. I just don't think that I need to include too much on what Troy and Gabriella do between the times they meet. It would make this story so incredibly long, and it would take forever to finish it. I left you guys with a cliffhanger, so maybe you will be inclined to comment... Hehe.**

**Since many of you reading this are pretty open-minded to stories, I was wondering how many of you would be interested in me posting a ZekeTaylor oneshot? Cira (xBREAKiNGFREE) I already know likes the idea, so I will most likely post it, but I'd like to know how open you all are to that idea. Don't worry, though. I might be opening up to non-canon pairings, but I don't see any Troypay in my future writings.**

**Anyway, review and tell me what you think. CC is, as always, welcome. **


	5. IV: Dark Chocolate Cappuccino

**Some of you are starting to see similarities in this story and other movies. I watched a few if them the other day, and I was surprised that I never thought of those movies before while I was writing this story. Although similarities are there, there isn't any movie that I found any direct parallels with (although, I will admit that it is definently similar to You've Got Mail)**

**Edit: There were some major typos that I found, and although I don't normally update you guys on that, some of them were pretty bad. **

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**Chapter IV: Dark Chocolate Cappuccino**

Troy felt a surge of emotion circulate through him as he stared at his best friend. As his anxiety faded away, it was replaced by confusion. What should he do? Ignore her? No. He owed it to her to at least go inside and explain himself. Should he introduce himself? Yeah, that would be _really_ smart going in and saying "Hey Gabriella, I know you hate me and all, but I am Baskethead14 and I think that we could be friends," Troy shook his head. He was backed into a corner that did not seem to have any way out.

"Troy… Stop looking at me with your mouth hanging open," Chad said in an uneasy joking tone. "You're starting to scare me."

Troy sighed heavily, letting out a breath that he didn't even know he held in. "Sorry," he mumbled.

"It's okay. Are you going to go in?" Chad stared back in the door, seeing Gabriella taking side glances at the clock as she cleaned the granite countertop. She was apparently waiting for him. She had certainly seemed to put more into her appearance that night than she had in the past.

"I sort of have to," Troy poked his head around the stairs to look in, feeling a sinking feeling in his stomach when he saw a familiar pink book sticking out of her waitress apron's bottom pocket.

"Would you like me to go with you?" Chad shot out ideas, looking at Troy shaking his head.

"No… I should probably do this myself." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I'll just take the bus back to the dorms. You shouldn't have to wait here. It probably won't take long."

"Okay," Chad gave an encouraging smile at his friend. "Good luck."

"Thanks," Troy replied with a weak smile back. Chad made his way back to the car, and Troy stood outside, desperately trying to gather his thoughts in the cool night air. His mind was still trying to register the fact that the girl that he had found one of the people that he had the most in common with was the girl that he had disliked for the past five years. He had always found Gabriella arrogant and self-absorbed, and never would have he ever suspected her to be in this position now.

Taking a look at his watch, Troy saw that he was nearly fifteen minutes late. He owed it to Gabriella to at least show up, even if he was the last person that she wanted to see.

With a final look down the street, Troy turned to head up the stairs. He sucked in a deep breath of Albuquerque springtime air, wishing that he had been given some warning to this.

Troy opened the door, hearing the small bell above the door give a little jingle, while he saw Gabriella look up with a bright smile. Upon seeing it was her study date, however, the smile on her face dropped to a level where it was obvious she did not want him there. Troy put on a smirk, trying to hide his inner turmoil of emotions.

_Troy Bolton? What the heck is he doing here?_ Gabriella closed her eyes, hoping that he wasn't going to take a seat at the counter. Kelsi could deal with him while she waited for Baskethead… Who was fifteen minutes late.

Her heart sank when Troy approached the counter, still wearing a smirk that told Gabriella that he was challenging her to say something. Although tempted to fire off a rhetorical comment, she bit her tongue. She was at work, and Troy knew that. He had her under his thumb, and it was a feeling she didn't enjoy at all. Saying something snarky to him might get her in trouble with the boss.

Her earlier emotions quickly faded back to anger when Troy sat down, kicking back in the seat and still staring at Gabriella, looking to her as being very cocky. He tried desperately to think of something to say, until Gabriella was the first to speak.

"What would you like?" She asked, in a completely fake cheerful tone. It actually had more of an 'I hate you and am faking this' edge to her voice. Troy couldn't believe that she was just picking up right back to being her usual snobby ways. Had she just forgotton the afternoon before?

"Medium Dark Chocolate Cappuccino with whipped cream," Troy retorted, matching Gabriella's tone. He tried to avoid her bewitching eyes, not only because he knew they were probably burning with anger, but because he knew that he probably wouldn't be able to look away.

"Look, I have to clean the counter… Would you mind sitting at a table?" Gabriella pointed to an empty booth in the corner. She wanted the counter to be completely clear when Baskethead came. So far, she had occupied herself with cleaning it, using that as an excuse to most customers when they wanted to sit on the counter.

"No, thanks. It looks clean enough to me," Troy calmly said back, wondering why he was acting so pushy with her. Should he tell her now? "You're not waiting for a hot date, now are you?" He teased, raising an eyebrow with Gabriella blushed. "Going to make-out during break?"

"None of your business, Bolton," she hissed, trying to cover her face that she knew was turning a shade of crimson. Troy spotted the blush, creeping up on her already-rosy cheeks. At that glance, he noticed just how much Gabriella had prepared for the meeting. She looked stunning…

"It is plenty of my business, because I don't want to get to your dorm and find you indulging in… _activities_ that the dorm advisor would not like to hear about. Nor do I want to find out about when I come to study tomorrow morning," Troy smirked again, regretting his words before they even reached Gabriella's ears, wondering where all of these comebacks were coming from. Gabriella got caught taken aback at Troy's absurd comment. She knew exactly what Troy was talking about.

"Just because you might indulge in such _activities_ like that, I'd like you to know that I don't. Unlike you, I have values," Gabriella turned away, going to get Troy's order prepared. Kelsi happened to already be making it.

"So… You're guy hasn't arrived yet and Troy is making it worse?" Kelsi said, as if reading Gabriella's mind. From the grumble Gabriella gave, Kelsi knew she was right. "Want me to work the counter?"

"No… I'll do it. I just can't believe he hasn't shown yet," Gabriella looked at the clock… Eight-thirty! "But I'll handle Troy. It's just another thing I have to work around with this job."

"Okay, okay," Kelsi handed Gabriella the warm Styrofoam cup. "Dark Chocolate Cappuccino. Medium. He has quite a strange taste when it comes to coffee." Kelsi giggled.

"I was thinking that. But I couldn't get past his first comment to really care," Gabriella sighed, taking the cup. Kelsi went back to the other tables, taking and handing out orders. Gabriella shoved the drink into Troy's hands, noticing that Kelsi had given her a to-go cup.

"Medium Dark Chocolate Cappuccino. _To-go_," she dug into the side pocket of her apron, getting the appropriate length straw out.

"I didn't want a to-go," Troy glared at her, getting the hint and quite astonished that Gabriella was not going to warm up to him being there. He took a sip of the strong coffee, knowing that he wouldn't be able to sleep that night because of the caffeine. He had to act like he knew what he was doing, though. He was most definently _not_ going to give Gabriella the satisfaction that he was clueless on what to do.

"Well, that's what I heard," Gabriella shrugged, feeling defeated. It was eight-thirty, Baskethead hadn't shown, and Troy refused to leave her alone. Was he really that insane to think that she would just randomly welcome him? Just because they had had an… awkward moment… didn't mean that they were instant friends. And she had been polite to begin with, but he had insisted of making her life misery the one time she wanted him to leave her alone.

She sighed, wondering exactly why this night had turned into a complete disaster. Had fate decided her and Baskethead just shouldn't meet? But why would fate bring Troy in his place? Maybe Troy was just part of the complexity of the maze that life had set out for her.

Feeling a need to get away, Gabriella exited from the small door behind the counter, walking to the bathroom. By now, she had a bad feeling that Baskethead wasn't coming. She felt a tear slide down her cheek, refusing to cry in front of Troy Bolton.

Sipping the coffee once more, he let himself draw quiet, watching Gabriella stride into the bathroom. He saw a glimmer of something on her cheek, realizing that a it was a single tear. She wiped it away quickly, disappearing into the bathroom.

Troy knew deep down that their comments towards each other weren't the actions that caused her to cry. Gabriella, much like he did, had her heart into the meeting. It was still hard to comprehend that she was the person that he had shared personal thoughts to. She was the one that had gotten him to read at least five romance novels that he'd actually liked.

It was her, Gabriella Montez, which had confided to him for help. Troy had no idea why he was inclined to be rude to her. Normally, she was the one that started the arguments with her sneering tone, but Troy knew that if he didn't retaliate, she might open up.

_Might_ being the keyword in that sentence.

This was going to take some getting used to, and Troy knew it.

Meanwhile, Gabriella stood in front of the mirror in the two-stall bathroom. The facility was very clean, thanks to all of the combined efforts of the staff. Right now, Gabriella really couldn't have cared if it was the nastiest bathroom in the world.

She kept wiping away from the tears coming fresh in her eyes before they smeared her makeup. She didn't quite understand why he didn't show up and Troy did, but things just weren't working out. Gabriella did not understand why she was so emotional… she just met the guy a few months ago. But it was more than that. She had wanted to deeply to find someone that she could talk to.

As she had been reasoning earlier, Taylor was great, but sharing the same interests with a guy? It was like he was one in a million.

Finally getting control of her feelings, she wiped her eyes, touched up on her eyeliner and mascara from her pocket, and walked out of the bathroom. Upon exiting, she felt a pair of eyes on her, looking up to face Troy, looking at her with concern.

Had he been staring at the bathroom door the entire time? Their eyes locked, with Troy averting his gaze to the ceiling, stirring what was left of his cappuccino. He took a long sip, once again avoiding eye contact with Gabriella.

Why was he so compelled to look at her? Troy closed his eyes as she passed by, allowing him to get a smell of cherry blossom perfume that clung to Gabriella. Her eyes showed hints that she had been crying, although Troy knew that she would never admit that. He just wanted to hug her, his feelings of anger rushing out of him, getting replaced with compassion for her.

She had basically been stood up. Baskethead was standing in front of her, but she would never realize it, and Troy suspected that. He pulled a couple of dollars out of his pocket, eyeing Gabriella. He wasn't ready to tell Gabriella yet. She wasn't ready to consume that.

She had once again busied herself with cleaning the sparkling countertop, with much more force than necessary. Troy coughed, trying to get her attention.

He succeeded, making Gabriella feel another wave of unusual emotions. She needed to get his receipt before he left, and somehow manage it without eye contact. It was strange, remembering the concerned look in Troy's eyes… Something she had never thought possible of the basketball star.

Ringing up the ticket, she tried to speak.

"Two ninety-five," she mumbled, barely audibly. Troy couldn't hear her, but he knew what she was saying. He could see what his drink cost on the menu. He placed a five-dollar bill in her hand, nodding in response. She tried to count out his change, but Troy held up his hand.

"You keep the change. You were a quite amusing waitress," he chuckled, picking up his drink and making his way outside.

"Amusing?" Gabriella mumbled, unable to guess if that was meant to compliment or offend her. Sighing, she shook her head, watching the sandy blonde exit the door. She shrugged, getting ready to end her shift. She'd have to take it as a compliment for now, because tomorrow she would find out what he really meant.

As Gabriella was pulling off her apron, Troy was nearing the bus stop a block away from the coffee house. He had taken the pink rose out of his backpack, seeing that it had not been damaged. He had gotten it specifically because it was the flower pictured on the cover of _A Rose For Melinda_.

Troy ran his finger down one of the petals, feeling the fragileness of the object. He twirled the rose around, taking a seat at the bench.

After what seemed like awhile, although it had only been fifteen minutes in reality, Troy saw headlights coming down the street. The car rolled to a stop in front of him, which he assumed was because there was a stop sign.

It wasn't, however. The window rolled down, revealing a familiar brunette in the driver's seat. Shyly, she looked out, getting Troy's attention.

"Do you need a ride?" She asked nervously. Troy was about to object, but she began again. "The buses won't come back for another thirty minutes."

With not much of a choice, Troy made his way to the car, completely confused. Gabriella had hated him. Then, she had shown a little warmth towards him. Then, she started hating him again. Now, she was showing more warmth. What was she going to do next? Kill him one the way home, and then give him a nice burial as another string of warmth came?

He got in, shutting the door. "Thanks," he said while pulling his seat belt on. Gabriella then noticed the rose sitting in his lap.

"When did you get that?" Gabriella asked out of curiosity, not remembering him come into the cafe with a rose.

"Oh, I… Um, just found it," Troy said awkwardly, knowing the reply was less than believable. Gabriella, however, seemed to take the excuse. She drove off, heading in the direction of the campus a few blocks away.

"You do live in the dorms, right?" She asked, realizing that he might have an apartment somewhere.

"Yeah, I do. Daniel Hall," Troy nodded. "It's right next to your dorm hall, if I'm not mistaken."

"I guess so," Gabriella giggled. "I don't really pay that much attention to where anything is besides where my classes are."

Troy chuckled, looking around at the passing scenery. They rode in silence for a few minutes until Gabriella rolled the car to a stop in her assigned parking spot. Troy grabbed his backpack, the rose, and opened the door into the fresh air. Gabriella followed, pulling her light jacket closer to her. They walked side-by-side, brushing arms every once in awhile.

More silence came as the two conintued walking to the dorm buildings, engulfing them like the blanket of the night. Troy and Gabriella both, unknowingly to each other, were feeling a mix of emotions. Awkward was what most of it covered, but confusion was there too.

Finally, the two neared where the paths split to go to the different dorm halls. Troy stopped, wondering how to thank Gabriella properly for the ride home.

"Thank you for the ride," he mumbled, feeling his pride prevent him from giving a sincere thank you. After all, this was the girl that had hated him this afternoon. Feeling the rose in his hand, he suddenly knew how he could sincerely thank her.

"You're welcome," she shrugged. Troy pulled out the rose once more, handing it to her.

"I know it's dumb to think that I'm giving you something that I found on the sidewalk… But… I'm not going to do anything with it, so… um…" Troy continued to ramble, finding it difficult to stop talking in awkward situations. "I guess it would look good in your dorm. Not that I've been in it or anything, but it must be just like-"

"I guess it's my turn to say thank you," Gabriella smiled brightly at him for the first time she could remember. It was an interruption, but Gabriella was smart enough to know when a guy was rambling incoherently.

"No problem," Troy turned around, beginning to walk away. "See you tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow," Gabriella assured, making her way back to her dorm room. Taylor would be pumping her for information that she would spill to. The disappointment from tonight was still upsetting to her, but these odd feelings for Troy were the ones that were bothering her the most right now.

* * *

**An interesting fact is that I never planned for Troy to get feelings for Gabriella until the very end. But as I wrote this, I saw more and more that Troy and Gabriella are both desperately trying to take control. I think I gave it to Troy in this chapter, although Gabriella partially had it when they were walking to the dorm rooms. **

**Now, as much as I wanted them to explain themselves to each other in this chapter [as well as all of you were probably wanting, I have wanted all along for Troy to know, but not Gabriella. They've still got a study date, remember? Hehe.**

**Anyway, the reviews for the last chapter were spectacular! It's nice to have people not only say 'update!', but add their in-depth opinion on the story! **


	6. V: Ancient History

**I decided to be nice and update this story while I wasn't busy at all. Well, I am, but it's not near as bad as the usual. This chapter is one of my favorites, simply because it's where the story will take a new turn. **

**Anyway, before I say too much, enjoy the chapter!**

**

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Chapter V: Ancient History**

Gabriella had a dreamless sleep, mainly because her emotions wore her down more than she thought. Her sleep was peaceful, letting her snuggle into the purple bedspread deeper and deeper. Now, in the dim corner of her room, she was about half awake, trying to salvage what rest she could before she knew she had to get up.

That didn't last long. Her bright-eyed and bushy-tailed roommate snuck in, looking at her friend snuggled in a fetal position under the covers. Although Gabriella had told her of the events of last night, Taylor didn't fully believe that she had given Troy a ride home simply because she felt sorry for him sitting there alone on the bench.

Taylor had a feeling that Gabriella had something more for him that she wouldn't admit. Taylor was glad, though, that Troy had been a distraction. Gabriella would have probably moped around all night since Baskethead had failed to show up. But Troy had given Gabriella a reason to sleep, since his test grade ultimately lay on her shoulders.

Was it fair? No. Was it highly convenient? Yes.

Making her way to the blinds that covered the sunlight trying to spill through the window, Taylor grabbed the pull-string to the blinds, giving it a nice tug.

"Wake-y, wake-y Gabriella!" Taylor said cheekily, feeling the warmth from the golden rays spilling in the window. Gabriella bolted upright, surprised at her friends entry.

"Tay!" Gabriella moaned groggily, sitting back and pulling the sheet over her head. Her eyes stung from the sudden change in light.

"Well, I'm already ready to go to work. It's not anything like you to sleep in late. Plus," Taylor smirked, "Troy will probably be over in about an hour."

Gabriella, once again, shot upright, her eyes wide. "It's already ten?" She threw the covers back, running to the bathroom. Taylor laughed at her friend, knowing that Gabriella could - and would - get ready in less than ten minutes.

Grabbing her purse that she had left on Gabriella's dresser, Taylor exited her friend's room.

"I'll see you later Gabriella," she slung the strap over her shoulder, making her way out the door.

"Bye Taylor!" Gabriella called from the bathroom, feverishly brushing her hair before she got in the shower. She heard the door to the room close, leaving Gabriella alone for the rest of the day. Or, at least until Taylor got off and came back home at two.

Quickly, Gabriella finished her shower, found some decent clothes to wear, blow-dried her hair, and added a little bit of make-up for her meeting today. Normally, she wouldn't put so much effort into her appearance… But something had happened last night that had made Troy seem like a normal college student. A cute one, for that matter.

Gabriella gaped a little at her thought. She refused to admit that this was happening internally in her mind. She had hated the guy two days ago! She could barely be in the same room as him, let alone _like_ him!

As an idea to divert her attention away from the situation, Gabriella took note of the time. It was still forty-five minutes until Troy would be over, so she decided to get out her laptop and see if Baskethead for a reason as to why he wasn't there. She only planned to stay on for fifteen minutes, so she could start getting study material ready for Troy.

All of the old feelings of disappointment came back as her computer booted up. Was Baskethead hiding something? Did he have a decent excuse from last night?

Clicking onto her sign-in screen, Gabriella felt a surge of relief and anxiety when she saw that he, indeed, was online.

The hardest part for Gabriella was finding something to say. How do you ask someone why he stood you up on a night that you had been anticipating? Sighing, she just went with the easiest question. She didn't want to sound mean, but she didn't want to sound passive about the matter, either.

**Brainiac824:** _Why weren't you there last night?_

On the other end, Troy bit his lip. He had been up for the past hour, thinking of ways to tell Gabriella in person. He was tempted to tell her right there… But he felt that he needed to tell her in person. He just needed to.

Coming back to reality, Troy scratched his head in need of an answer. He typed the only thing that he could think of. It was a complete lie, but he needed something.

**Baskethead14: **_My boss was being a jerk and called me in. Brainiac, I'm so sorry. I wanted to get a hold of you when I got called in… But I have no other form of communication with you besides this. _

Gabriella nodded, somehow understanding the answer. Taylor's boss was just like that. Maybe he worked for Evan. Gabriella noted that she would have to ask Taylor about any guys at the store when she got home.

**Brainiac824: **_I can understand that. Anyway… I can't be on for long. Probably only a few minutes. I'm sort of expecting company. _

Troy laughed, not understanding why he didn't realize that it was Gabriella before. He probably had just been blinded by the agitation he felt every time he got near her. He probably should be leaving in a bit, but he wouldn't tell her that. He'd let her log off first to try to avoid dropping any hints as to who he was.

**Baskethead14: **_Throwing a wild party? Why wasn't I invited?_

Gabriella giggled upon seeing the comment. She didn't know if she should respond sarcastically or honestly, but either would still be funny. Gabriella decided to go with a mix as she typed a reply.

**Brainiac824: **_It depends if you consider studying a wild party._

Troy thought for a second, thinking of the only times he'd ever studied with his friends. Those had ended up being wild parties anyway. He ran his hands over the keyboard, knowing his response to her.

**Baskethead14: **_Well, that depends on who's attending this study session. _

Gabriella knew what he was talking about. Most times, college 'study' parties were simply covers to announce a full-blown frat party in class. It had never happened in her presence before, although she knew she would've been a nervous wreck if one of her study sessions had turned out into that. She paused, looking at the clock. Had fifteen minutes really gone by that fast? She typed a reply back, pressed enter, signed off, and then went off to finish getting ready.

**Brainiac824: **_Time just flew by! I better go. Talk to you later?_

**Baskethead14: **_Later!_

Troy closed his laptop one he saw that Gabriella had signed off. He plugged the extension cord into the wall, planning on letting his laptop charge in his room while he was at Gabriella's dorm.

Quickly, he grabbed his study notebook and checked his hair one last time. Chad had left earlier that morning to play some two-on-two with a few of their friends.

Seeing his hair was fine, he locked the door to his room and began his walk to the opposite dorm hall. Troy had enough knowledge of the dorm rooms to know that the '100' section of the rooms were on the second floor of the four-story building.

The girls' dorms were the exact same as the boys' were, except everything was opposite of each other. The stairs were on the left, instead of on the right. The snack bar was to the right, instead of the left. Most other things were as well. Although, many of the paintings dotting the walls were different.

When the basketball captain was climbing the stairs, he felt a group of girls eyeing him oddly as they were descending. It was not unusual for a boy to be in the girls' dorms during the day, but it was odd for Troy Bolton to be there. He wasn't known for visiting girls in their dorm rooms.

Reaching room 109, he quietly knocked, feeling more pairs of eyes on him from the main room where girls were sitting on the couches watching TV.

He heard the lock click, and the knob turned, revealing Gabriella in the doorway. Some girls spying on the scene gasped, wondering what was going on and why Troy Bolton was going into Gabriella Montez's dorm.

"Ignore them," Gabriella said quietly, leading Troy into a dorm room that looked exactly like his. Except, there was a mass of sticky notes on one wall, not to mention much more organized.

Closing the door behind him, he went up to the wall, looking at all of the yellow notes, written in feminine handwriting. They had a name, message, and date on each.

_Gabriella: Print Theory report on Friday 4/10_

_Taylor: Order new stock for shop. 4/12_

Many notes followed, giving Troy a reason to laugh.

"Are you and… Taylor… forgetful?" Troy asked, assuming Taylor was her roommate. If this was the Taylor that Troy was thinking of, he knew the two were practically inseparable in high school.

"No, it's just to make sure that we don't forget. We take off the reminder once we're done," she pointed to the wastebasket in the corner full to the brim with used notes. "Just to make sure."

"Oh," Troy nodded. It was probably something him and Chad should do. They were prone to forgetting everything. Gabriella started pulling out two TV trays, setting them up next to the couch.

"Sorry. We don't have a table," Gabriella shrugged, avoiding Troy's gaze. "Hope this is okay."

"It's fine," Troy replied awkwardly, taking a seat on the couch. It was almost identical to the one that was in his dorm, since most of the accessories in the rooms were provided by the campus. Although, their couch was much cleaner than the one that Troy and Chad had.

Gabriella went into what Troy assumed was her room, reappearing with a bundle of books and notebooks that she had set out to tutor him with. Gabriella didn't quite know what to feel with Troy in her dorm. It was something many girls would only dream of, yet here she was… alone with the most popular guy from high school. She still refused to make eye contact, knowing that if she did, she might never look away.

The thought scared her more than anything.

Troy took out his binder, feeling the same way as Gabriella. When she sat down, the warmth from her closeness was strange and foreign to him.

She started talking, beginning with objective he needed help with. She desperately tried not to breath in his cologne when he would lean his head over, while he tried not to make skin contact with her.

"And then, this bone…" She sighed in frustration. Troy really hadn't been listening, trying to control his feelings. He only knew that the sigh had halted the noise coming to his ears.

"What's wrong?" Troy asked, blinking at her.

"Look, Troy, I'm sorry, but this is just too awkward," Gabriella shrugged, feeling that her excuse was both lame and true. She couldn't help think that he was the person that she almost considered an enemy, but at the same time was feeling as if she actually liked him. "Yesterday, we couldn't be in the same room with each other, and here we are, speaking to each other as if we're actually on the same planet."

"I agree," he replied, surprising Gabriella by his answer. "Look, why don't we just start over?"

"Start… Over?" Gabriella looked up at him, wondering what in the world he could be talking about. She was just going to suggest finding a new tutor. This study session would be pointless if either of them couldn't focus on the assignment.

"I know our past is rocky, and that's what's making this new friendship so much harder," Troy explained. "Well, I assumed friendship. So, let's just start over and let all of our past feelings go." Troy rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"Okay," Gabriella let out a breath, smiling. Friendship. Had those words really passed through his lips?

"Hi," Troy cracked a grin, outstretching his hand. "I'm Troy Bolton, basketball captain. I think you were supposed to be my tutor for today."

"Well, hello," Gabriella giggled, shaking Troy's hand. "I'm Gabriella Montez, straight A student and valedictorian of East High. I believe that you are correct."

"Awesome," Troy nodded, picking up his pencil. He was now ready to work.

"Well, first…" Gabriella began, feeling as if the room had opened into a large space, instead of a confined space that Gabriella felt she had been in. It didn't feel like she was enclosed around him anymore. She was open and talkative, finding that her and Troy got off subject quite a bit during their lesson.

It was alright with the two of them, though. They found that the other's company was highly enjoyable.

A tutor session that should've lasted only an hour dragged on until twelve forty-five, when Gabriella felt her stomach churn in hunger. It let out a loud groan, causing Gabriella's eyes to widen when she realized exactly how loud the grumble had been.

"Hungry?" Troy asked, making Gabriella turn a deep shade of mauve. It shouldn't really embarrass her, but she had always been critical of herself. Since last night, she had only had a package of crackers. She hadn't had anything that day.

"Well… I didn't eat anything this morning… or last night…" Gabriella bit her bottom lip, hoping that she wasn't turning too red.

"Good, because I am, too," Troy got up from his spot, stretching and lifting the embarrassing mood from Gabriella. "Except I had breakfast and dinner," he winked at her.

"Well, you're a guy. For some reason, you're always hungry," Gabriella got up, digging through her cabinets to find something. "What do you think you want for lunch?"

"What do you have?" Troy raised an eyebrow.

"Easy Mac, Macaroni and Cheese, Velveeta shells and cheese…" Gabriella put on a displeased look while shuffling the boxes around.

"Oh, so it's cheese mixed in with some kind of boiled pasta. I was thinking pizza… but…" Troy laughed, feeling so much better. It was strange to think what would've happened if either of them had not been so stubborn in high school.

"Pizza?" Gabriella rolled her eyes. "I'm a college student that makes barely minimum wage! Eating out is a once every two months thing for me. I ate out the other night, so no more for me for another four paychecks."

"My uncle owns the one down the street," Troy explained, feeling a bit guilty that he didn't have a job. He typically went to his parents for dinner, since his mother was always wanting him to move back home. "I can get us huge discounts."

"How 'huge'?" Gabriella smirked at him as he appeared to be in deep thought. She put up the box of Easy Mac that she had picked up, waiting for Troy's answer.

"Is 'free' big enough?" Troy laughed, seeing Gabriella make a beeline for her purse in the other room.

"What are we waiting for?" She strode over to the door, waiting impatiently for Troy. He stopped her, knowing that they still had the last quarter of their Anatomy assignment to get finished.

"What happened to finish studying?" He chuckled, seeing Gabriella scrunch her face in disgust.

"We can always pick up later…" the brunette pulled the strap of her purse over her shoulder. "You can just leave your stuff here…"

"Fine by me," Troy shrugged, fully ready to go and eat. Gabriella opened the door and led Troy out into the main room. The girls were still there, and they were not intently watching.

On their way out, Gabriella tried her best to ignore all of the people that she could feel watching them. Most students at East High settled for the University of Albuquerque, unless you were Sharpay Evans, and you went straight to Broadway and online colleges. So, nearly everyone either saw or knew about the utter dislike Troy and Gabriella had shared for each other.

_Had_ shared.

To them, it already felt like ancient history.

* * *

**So this didn't end with any cliffhanger, and I really didn't feel like having them kill each other, so this is sort of how this turned out. Now… could Gabriella still survive learning that it's Troy? That's a bit more complicated than it sounds…**

**Well, I'm not going to bug all of you about reviews now, because they are amazing and you guys are awesome readers, so this chapter will end with a thanks for supporting this story! **


	7. VI: Do This Again

**I really do want to apologize for not updating in forever. I babysat over Thanksgiving and I've been working hard for region band. I made it, and I also made area (state auditions), which means more work. I'm up and ready for it, though. The reason this update took so long is because I really didn't like the original way the chapter went. I rewrote about half of it today. I'm still not really happy with it, but I've kept this update form you guys long enough. **

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Chapter VI: Do This Again**

"Are you serious?" Gabriella laughed heartily at the confession Troy had made to her. "You have a dog named Basket? That's a little obsessive, don't you think?"

"I was nine when I named her, okay?" Troy rolled his eyes, taking a nibble off of his pepperoni pizza. Gabriella laughed again at the thought that the dog was a _girl_. Her and Troy were sitting in the pizza parlor; enjoying the pizza that Troy had persuaded his uncle to make for them. His uncle was part Italian (as was Troy's mother), getting his pizza-making skills from his own father.

Trying to get the stringy cheese to separate from the pizza, Troy pulled away, causing a longer strand of cheese to emerge. He rolled the string around his tongue until the cheese was once again tugging. Gabriella watched the scene intently, laughing at the silly faces Troy made in his futile effort to bite off the cheese.

Finally, he put the pizza down, took the long string in his hands, and pulled it apart. While swallowing down the pizza, a look of victory crossed Troy's face. He didn't know why he didn't feel embarrassed in front of Gabriella. But, ever since they 'started over', he felt like he could do or say anything around Gabriella and not feel like a complete idiot.

"You know," Gabriella took another small bite of her pizza. "I understand that frustration. I pulled off the entire top of my pizza off when I came here the other day with Taylor."

"At least you didn't do that in front of your prom date," Troy cracked an amused grin, getting another round of giggles from Gabriella. "Oh, and for senior prom, I tried that spaghetti trick from _Lady and the Tramp_. Yeah, well, I thought I had found part of a noodle that she was slurping. I took that end, slurped it really hard, and the other end came shooting out of the pasta, smacking across my face. Turned out it wasn't the same noodle."

Gabriella was sipping her soda, nearly choking on it in her laughter.

"Did it leave a spaghetti sauce streak across your face?" Gabriella gulped down the remnants hard, trying to not start laughing again.

"It didn't get on my face near as much as it had splattered across my date's dress," he took another bite of pizza with a smug smile, being much more cautious about the thick cheese. "Needless to say, prom was one of the last times I did that."

"Well, my senior prom date didn't understand the concept of dancing," Gabriella chuckled. "The only two words he knew of were 'make' and 'out'. That's why I left the prom early."

"So you missed out?" Troy asked curiously. He felt a bit of resentment towards himself – he hadn't even noticed that she'd left. The prom had been years ago, but he could remember it clearly. Gabriella hadn't crossed his mind once that night.

"Not really. Taylor had the same problem, so we went to my house and piled on the sweets while watching movies," Gabriella shrugged. "It was really no big deal."

"But don't most girls consider their senior prom the time of their life?" Troy finished his first slice of pizza, wiping his mouth off.

"Only if you plan on… _indulging_ in activities that your parents would be astonished at," Gabriella replied, quoting what Troy had told her back at the coffee house.

"Oh," Troy instantly got the point Gabriella was trying to get at. "Sorry about that."

"It's fine," Gabriella nodded, getting her next slice of pizza. "I needed a distraction that night, and there you were."

"By the way, I don't think that you had just work going on that night," Troy pointed out. It was tearing him apart inside knowing that she had no idea that Baskethead was him. "Were you meeting someone?" He raised his eyebrow, wanting to know exactly how Gabriella would explain it.

"Well," she sighed. "Sort of."

"Who was he? Where was he?" Troy questioned, acting clueless.

"I—I don't know." Gabriella confessed. Telling this to Troy seemed odd. Especially knowing that her entire situation seemed difficult to make it sound reasonable or safe.

"You don't know who he is?" Troy faked confusion. It made him feel better that at least she was telling him the truth… so far.

"No," Gabriella replied quietly. "I found him on the college forum a few months ago. It wasn't like me to give out my instant messaging username out to random people, but I needed an assignment due date."

"So, he replied to your message, and you couldn't stop talking to him?" Troy asked, trying to act like he was making a wild guess. It surprised Gabriella, but she blew it off. The situation, after all, was pretty predictable.

"Well…yeah," Gabriella confessed.

"So why was he a no-show?" Troy pressed. He needed to act interested, because for some reason, he liked the feeling that Gabriella continued to open up to him.

"He said his boss was being a jerk and he couldn't make it," Gabriella bit into her pizza.

"And you believed him?" Troy's eyebrows shot up, his accusation confusing Gabriella.

"Why shouldn't I?"

"That guy's good," Troy mumbled to himself, making sure it was loud enough for Gabriella to hear. "That's the oldest excuse in the book and he can get the smartest girl in town to believe it!"

"Are you saying he's lying?" Her eyes widened in contrast. Gabriella seemed to start panicking, every detail in her face scrunching in thought.

"Relax, Gabriella, I'm just kidding," Troy reached across the table, putting a hand on her small shoulder. Her expression softened, and he realized that his little comment could cause Gabriella to worry even more. Troy shook his head, trying to decide if he should tell her right there.

Taking a sip of her soda, Gabriella sat back. Troy was about to start a conversation hinting towards his alternate identity. However, his attempt was interrupted by his uncle who sat down at one of the empty chairs at their table.

"So," he began. "Who's this lovely lady, Troy?"

"This is Gabriella," Troy replied, seeing Gabriella blush out of the corner of his eye. Both of them knew what his uncle was really asking… 'Is this your girlfriend?' To respond to the unasked question, Troy thought of a quick reply. "She is tutoring me in one of my classes, and so I brought her here as a thank you gift."

"Well, nice to meet you Gabriella," he held out his hand, Gabriella shaking it shyly. "I can't believe that my nephew weaseled a pizza out of me, but didn't care to introduce me to a girl that actually finds him _funny_!" He got up, returning to the back with inaudible mumbles to get back to work. Troy sighed, knowing then that his uncle had been eavesdropping on the couple since they'd come in.

"Do you have a history in your family about not being funny or something?" Gabriella furrowed her eyebrows, not understanding Troy's uncle's last comment.

"Eh, not really," Troy replied. He actually knew what his uncle was getting at—when a girl laughs at every joke a guy will make, it means chemistry. Though, he wouldn't dare say that to Gabriella. "I'm usually not that funny."

"Yet you've been cracking jokes about me for the past couple of years?" Gabriella challenged. But when she saw the look of shock cross Troy's face, she wished she could take the comment back. "Look, sorry… This is just going to take some getting used to."

"No, no," Troy sipped his drink. "I know that I need to apologize for that… I really _am_ sorry."

Gabriella bit her lip, feeling another awkward moment descending. But they _needed_ to get this out of the way.

"It's fine," she began. "I probably should too. Sorry about pinpointing most of your mistakes in class." The two sat in silence, only hearing the voices of talking and laughing around them.

"Well, that's ancient history now," Troy grinned. "And maybe in a few years, I'll be able to understand how all of this is falling into place."

"Falling into place?" Gabriella asked, feeling that his statement didn't make sense. What was falling into place?

"Yeah," he looked around in thought, choosing his words very carefully. "Obviously fate wanted us to be friends. Otherwise we would've killed each other a long time ago."

"I was about ready to do just that earlier this week," Gabriella mumbled in awe. Had it really only been a few days ago? It felt like an eternity. She had very nearly _hated_ him the week before.

"And sitting here… talking with you," he looked at her in amazement, sipping his soda slowly, "I feel like I could say anything, and you'd understand."

"I… was thinking the exact same thing." She exhaled a sigh. He was actually _enjoying_ himself with her. Troy tried to look away from Gabriella's attentive gaze to avoid his reoccurring thoughts of spilling his secret to her. He found it frightening when he didn't _want_ to look away.

"Do you want anymore pizza?" Troy asked, nodding towards her empty plate. Distracting himself with a new task would rid the out-of-control thoughts from his mind.

"No, I'm fine," Gabriella paused, wanting to change the subject back to her online friend. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," Troy opened his arms in exaggeration. "I'm an open book."

"I want to know if you think me talking to someone online is completely stupid," she replied with a look in her eyes that pleaded for the truth. "I need to hear that I'm not crazy from someone other than Taylor."

"Well," Troy thought. "It's not the safest thing to do, but since campus students only have access to the forums, I don't see what you should worry about. He seems like a nice guy. What's his username?"

"Baskethead fourteen," Gabriella whispered, leaning her head across the table.

"You know," Troy whispered back. "You don't have to whisper it. Nobody in here ever listens to everyone else's conversations. And it's not like they'd be interested anyway." He waved his hand around, point out the open and sunlight-filled room full of many people eating.

"Oh," Gabriella blushed.

"I wonder what fourteen means…" Troy thought, of course, knowing very well what it meant. After all, he was the one that owned the username.

"Since he used to play basketball, I thought it's his basketball number," Gabriella shrugged, taking a bite from a breadstick. Troy blinked, wondering how she could've just taken a guess at it and gotten it right.

"Nah," he replied. "Maybe it's how many times he flunked the third grade." Gabriella, for the third time that hour, nearly choked on her food.

"Troy!" She groaned.

"Or how many girls he dated at once," he stroked his chin in mock thought. "You know, once you meet him, tell him I'd like to talk to him to get some tips."

"I'm sure he's not like that!" Gabriella giggled and rolled her eyes.

"You asked, I answered," Troy raised his arms in defeat, finishing his last slice of pizza. "All done?" he asked, noticing Gabriella's empty plate.

"I think so," Gabriella raised out of her seat, picking up her soda and purse.

"Let me get the plates," Troy said, noticing Gabriella's armful. He grabbed the dirty plates, returning them to the designated spot on the countertop. He took his drink, said a quick goodbye to his uncle, and caught up with Gabriella outside.

It was a sunny springtime day, the April showers had let up for the past week, giving spring breakers hope for the vacation that loomed two weeks away. Troy followed Gabriella back to her dorm, content with his full stomach.

"Thanks for taking me," Gabriella smiled brightly, stopping under the shade of a tall oak on the campus. "It's nice to go out with friends sometimes."

_Friends. _The word seemed just right, yet still felt overwhelming. How did the two go from enemies to friends in a day's time?

"No problem," he turned to face her, getting the feeling of infatuation once more. It was strange to look at her and think of Gabriella like that. Her being his enemy longer than she had ever been his friend… yet…

"I guess it's back to studying," Gabriella sighed, acting as if it was more of a chore.

"Complaining about going back to studying, are we?" Troy teased, Gabriella returning the comment with an appalled tone.

"Never!" Gabriella gasped. "Just, an afternoon with you seems to sound better than sitting and studying. I know that you're not a fan of it…"

"True," Troy chuckled lightly. "But, Gabriella," his tone grew serious. "I really enjoyed talking with you. And in all honesty, I'd like to do this again sometime."

"Me too, Troy," she smiled back as they made their way back to the dorm. "I'd really like to do this again."

"Then," Troy paused. "How about we talk later about spring break plans? That is, if you're not doing anything." Gabriella didn't reply verbally, but she didn't have to. Troy saw her answer by the glint in her eye and her excited nod.

Still more people glanced at the odd pairing passing through the campus grounds, talking and laughing as if they had known each other their entire lives.

It just so happened that Jason Cross was sitting by a tree, awaiting his girlfriend's arrival, when he spotted them. He intently watched, remembering just how clear Troy had made his utter dislike of the girl known throughout high school. As he saw Gabriella's eyes twinkle in at Troy's joke, Jason realized something.

Troy Bolton rarely had friends that were girls who stayed in his life very long. Gabriella Montez was turning out to be an entirely different story.

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**It was a filler chapter, yes. The next chapter is better. The update will also come sooner. As I mentioned before, I was never really happy with this chapter. Every time I came to rewrite it, I couldn't start from scratch again with the other chapters already written. Anyways, thanks for keeping up with this story! **


	8. VII: Double Identity

**This is the longest chapter so far, being over 3,200 words. This was the chapter that kept you waiting for an update, because I'm not fully satisfied with it (as I say with about seventy-five percent of what I write). I really shouldn't be posting this, because I'm not finished tweaking the rest of the chapters, but as a double New Years' and Christmas gift, I thought it was only fair! **

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**Chapter VII: Double Identity**

"C'mon guys!" The coach blew his whistle vociferously. "I know you guys don't think these plays are _that_ difficult!"

Gabriella walked cautiously into the gym, sneaking into a seat high up on the bleachers. The boys seemed genuinely tired out, groaning as they had to perform the set once again. Troy had mentioned something on the phone about the coach working them to the brink of death, but Gabriella had thought that he was just exaggerating, as most lazy college boys would.

It had been four days since the incident where Troy had brought her to lunch. The test – in which the preparation for had sealed their friendship – they had taken the previous day. The scores had come in and Gabriella wanted to check with Troy to see how he had done.

She set her backpack down, placing her elbows on her knees and propping her head in her cupped hands. She observed the game intently, wondering what exactly appealed to Troy about the sport. It seemed to her that it just was one big frustration sprinkled with sweat.

_Gross, _Gabriella thought to herself, inwardly cringing on the mental feel of sticky sweat.

Back on the court, Troy kept getting antsy with excitement. He was impatiently awaiting to tell Gabriella that he has passed the test with flying colors, and he just couldn't wait to see her face light up. She had this face that she made where the corners of her mouth shyly crooked upward while her nose crinkled ever so slightly…

_Focus, _Troy shook his head deliberately, trying to hear the coach's never-ending stream of critique on the team's overall lack of effort for the day.

The two had both been in a hurry after class the past few days, so Troy hadn't gotten the chance to say much to her since their study session. His mind was still elsewhere during the drills, which was probably half of the reason why the coach was so irritated at that point.

The inter-team game picked up once more, leaving Troy to start his way down the court with the ball. He started from mid-court, playing and replaying the order of plays in his head. His mental picture was all set up – there was the numbered circle '14', where he was supposed to move. Then, Chad's little circle was to the left.

Faking right – just as mapped out – Troy passed the ball back to Chad. In his split-second turn, he noticed that this wasn't quite a private practice. The gleaming wood bleachers were long stretches of empty space… Well, all except for one small occupied space.

In the back corner of the rows was a familiar brunette, watching the game awkwardly. He locked eyes with her, feeling his heart rate speed up. Reality came crashing back to him when he nearly tripped over his foot. He had stopped, returning the gaze intently.

"Troy! Quit daydreaming and play the game!" His coach called from across the court. Troy shook his head clear of thoughts, passing the ball back to Chad. He pulled in air to his lungs, realizing that he had almost forgotten to breathe.

He made side-glances at Gabriella all throughout practice, wondering what exactly possessed her to show up like that.

He wasn't angry with her; on the contrary, he was happy to see her, but it was still strange to see Gabriella Montez – the _'sports are a waste of time'_ Gabriella Montez – trying to get into basketball when he knew that she had no idea what the game was about.

To finish out practice, the usual 'coach pep-talk' was done, along with the schedule for next season. While it was still months away, their coach wanted them to be completely ready for the upcoming season. Troy, however, still couldn't fully concentrate. Maybe because it was flattering to him that she had taken time out of her schedule to come watch him. Or it might just be bothering him that he hadn't discussed their new friendship with his friends.

Troy secretly hoped it was the first one.

Thankfully, nobody had asked him about the girl he _thought_ he was going to meet. He didn't feel like explaining the truth, nor did he want to make up a complete lie.

Once the coach was concluded practice, murmurs about Gabriella erupted. Obviously, Troy was not the only one who had noticed her unique – yet uninvited – presence.

"Who invited _her_?"

"For an Einsteinette, she's not very smart…"

"He's going to freak!"

Troy listened as the team made their way to the locker room. It wasn't like the mutual dislike that Troy shared with Gabriella was a quiet one. Everyone knew.

Instead of going with the team, Troy stole away to the bleachers, where Gabriella was waiting for him at the bottom.

"You're the last person I would've ever expected to show up here," Troy said, partially out of breath from practice.

"Oh," Gabriella flushed a shade of red, not knowing if Troy meant the comment in a derogatory way or not.

"No, I mean," he ran a hand through his hair, seeing Gabriella's uncomfortable stare, "I didn't think I'd see you here. It just surprised me."

"Oh!" Gabriella repeated in a much lighter tone. "Well, I came here to ask you how you did on the test. I didn't realize practice ran this late," she glanced at her watch.

"Well, yeah, I guess I never mentioned that practice _always_ runs late," he replied with a nervous laugh. "And as for the test," he sighed loudly, trying to give away false disappointment.

Gabriella's pained look gave her feelings away. "You… you mean after all that work—"

"I passed!" He interrupted, smugly smiling at Gabriella's taken aback expression. Nobody had come out of the locker room quite yet, and apart from the pulsing of the air conditioner, the gym had fallen relatively silent.

"You little…!" Gabriella cut through the quiet, folding her arms across her chest while she stuck out her bottom lip.

"Don't give me that face," he winced. "My little sister can get me to do anything that way. I guess you can say it's my weak point."

"Say your sorry," Gabriella continued her pout, knowing now that she was in full control of Troy Bolton. It was a nice place to be.

"I'm sorry," Troy said half-heartedly. Finally, she looked him over and nodded with a smirk.

"Next study session we will need to work on that apology," Gabriella giggled. "If this is how you act in front of someone like me, I can see why you didn't have very many long-lasting relationships."

"You _so _didn't go there!" Troy nearly burst into laughter, sprinting towards Gabriella in a mock attempt to capture her. She squealed like a little girl, darting off across the gym, with Troy right on her heels. She was much quicker than he gave her credit for – although Troy felt that the energy would be short-lived. After years of intense training, he knew that conserving his energy would pull off in the long stretch.

Gabriella, still giggling like a teenage girl, rounded the corner out of the gym and into the concession stand area. In a split-second decision, she yanked open the door to the storage closet and whipped around to shut the door in Troy's face.

That plan wasn't the smartest idea.

Troy had been so close behind her that when she abruptly stopped, he couldn't react in time. With his arms still stretched forward from when he was reaching out to try to catch Gabriella, he ran into her straight on.

Lucky for Gabriella, Troy was a head taller than she was, which meant that her face ended up buried in the loose jersey draping across his chest. The force of the collision – much more overwhelming to a fragile being such as Gabriella – was eased by Troy who quickly pulled his hands around her waist to avoid the fall that was likely to happen. Reflexively, Gabriella allowed herself to cling to the fabric of his jersey for the support necessary to keep her balanced.

Speechless and out of breath, the two stood in the open doorway of the eight by ten foot storage closet, gripping the other like their balance was only set if they had the other to lean on.

"Well _that_ wasn't planned," Gabriella broke the silence was her breath was caught; long after Troy's staggered breathing had eased.

"We don't have to worry about the team interrupting us now," Troy murmured. "So what if we nearly give ourselves a concussion along the way?"

Gabriella laughed lightly. "So, before I was _rudely_ interrupted in deliberating my plans for the next study session, what were you going to do?"

"Well, I was _going_ to give you my cell phone number so you don't have to go to the trouble of waiting for me at basketball practice," Troy laughed skeptically. Earlier he had been thinking of how he probably would've kicked himself if he would of ever known that he'd give Gabriella Montez his phone number.

Funny enough, Gabriella felt exactly the same.

"Anyway," Gabriella broke the silence and pulled out a piece of paper out of her book bag. She scanned the small room for any sign of a flat surface. To make it easier for her, Troy turned around and gestured for her to use his back as a flat surface. She scribbled the number quickly, handing it to Troy "There's mine, just incase you… well… you know."

"I… Don't have a piece of paper…" Troy changed the subject, searching around trying to find a piece of paper.

"Here," Gabriella held out her head. Troy looked at her blankly, seeing her empty palm. Gabriella noticed Troy's expression and giggled. "Write it on my hand."

"Oh!" Troy bowed his head in an attempt to cover up his blush, borrowing Gabriella's pen to scrawl his number onto her hand. The light touch from the pen tickled her hand, leaving a prickling feeling where the set of numbers was written. His hand was warm compared to hers, which had been sitting on a cold bleacher for quite awhile.

With Troy still holding her hand, Gabriella froze when she felt a pair of eyes on her and realized, out of the corner of her vision, Chad Danforth had approached the two in the doorway.

"I guess I interrupted something…" he looked at the pair, who exchanged glances as they looked down awkwardly. At the same time, the two realized what it could appear to Chad Danforth what they were doing. Here they were, outside of a darkened room, close together, with Troy still holding the hand Gabriella had given him to write on.

"No, no!" Troy blushed heavily, finishing to write down his number on her hand.

"Troy was just giving me his phone number, that's all," Gabriella looked around tensely, having never been in such an awkward situation before. _Like _that_ sounded any better, _she thought with a shake of her head.

"Anyway," Chad dismissed the previous thoughts with a wave of his hand. "Everyone cleared out of the gym. You should go change now."

"Great," Troy strolled out of the room. "Thanks Chad. Wait for me, Gabriella?" His eyes were hopeful, almost pleading, glimmering with the thoughts of accompanying her back to the dorms.

"Yeah," she smiled genuinely back, following Troy and Chad back through to the gym. The threesome made their way back to the locker room entrance, with Gabriella and Chad stopping right outside of the door.

"Chad," he said once Troy had gone to change, extending his hand for Gabriella to shake.

"Gabriella," she introduced herself, shaking his hand. "I guess we've never had a formal introduction."

Chad chuckled lightly, feeling slightly inclined to tell Gabriella that it was Troy who was on the other end of her instant messaging conversations. He didn't like it that Troy was keeping things from her, because if there was one thing that Chad knew, it was that girls didn't like secrets. And this was about the biggest one there was.

Troy, however, didn't agree with Chad. He said that when the time is right, he would talk to Gabriella about it. Being Troy, though, his friend knew that 'when the time is right' could be up to two years from then.

"Ready to go?" Troy barged through the door, snapping Chad out of his thoughts.

"Sure," he and Gabriella replied in unison. The three started to leave the gym, conversing and laughing until they reached the dorm rooms five minutes later.

Troy so desperately wanted to walk Gabriella all the way back to her dorm, and through his body language was trying to drop major hints to Chad that he wanted to, but his pride wouldn't let him say something like that to his friend. Or in front of Gabriella, for that matter.

"So," Gabriella said, breaking the silence.

"I guess we better go," Chad started in the other direction, while Troy sighed futilely.

"Yeah, I guess," he waved to Gabriella, who gave a simple smile back. She turned, walking light heartedly back to her room. Taylor had already called her twice on her cell phone. Gabriella hoped that she wasn't too worried about her.

The brunette made her way through the halls and up the stairs, reaching her dorm just as Taylor was opening the door.

"Gabriella!" Taylor groaned. "I was about ready to send out a search party!"

"Relax Taylor!" Gabriella laughed, going back into the dorm room with her best friend. "I'm here. Just stopped by to see how Troy did on the test."

"Well," her friend shook her head. "Next time you could at least _call_! Besides, I got _promoted_!"

"Are you serious?" Gabriella grinned wildly for her friends, jumping and squealing along with her like the crazy friends they were. "Congrats!"

"I know! Now, I'll work so much better hours. No after-school stuff. It's a lot similar to your schedule: morning hours before classes, Friday evenings, and weekends off," Taylor could no longer hide her enthusiasm. She pulled her best friend into a Taylor-style bear hug, only allowing enough air for Gabriella to mouth out two words.

"That's… awesome!" She choked out, feeling instant relief when Taylor released her grip and oxygen flowed into her lungs. "This calls for dinner and a movie this weekend!"

"I feel so… free!" Taylor squealed, flinging her arms around.

"Not to burst your bubble or anything, but you still have to go to work, Taylor," Gabriella chuckled. "You're not quite free from that."

"Minor setback," Taylor shrugged.

"Now if only there were any decent guys around, we'd be having the time of our lives," Gabriella rolled her eyes. Taylor raised her eyebrows at her best friend, who just stared blankly back.

"You don't give yourself enough credit, you know that?" a crooked smiled crossed Taylor's lips when Gabriella's cheeks flushed a deep shade of red. "You've been approached by people, but apparently you've been reading too much Shakespeare to realize that this fantasy Romeo isn't – "

"That's not on my list of things to do right now," if there was one pet peeve Gabriella had about Taylor, it was that she acted like her mother so much. She didn't like being told who to date or when the right time would be – she wanted to work on this at her own pace.

"Oh, come on."

"I'll be in my room," Gabriella spun on her heel, deeply embarrassed at her loss of this argument. She had wanted to go celebrating with Taylor – but now the only topic of conversation would be about free time. Free time would lead into dating conversations. Finally, they would return full circle into this ongoing debate.

To distract her thoughts, she flipped on her laptop. The lights flickered to light brightly with the slow hum of the computer base. The screen switched to her desktop that displayed a picture of her and Taylor at the lake last summer. Their faces were pushed into the camera at an odd angle, their arms slung over the other, holding up a large towel that concealed their wet bathing suits. Their hair was soaking wet, with beads of water still streaming down their smiling faces…

Gabriella saw that day as the day she'd laughed the hardest; the day that she'd been carefree for the first time in years. High school was all about studying. The summer after graduation was for college preparation. During the year was a rush to get things done. Last summer, none of that had been an issue. It had been the staff party at a summer camp the two had counseled at.

The ding signaling a successful log in broke Gabriella away from her summer memories. Unlike the usual, she wouldn't have to wait for her friend to get online. Her little 'stop-by', as Taylor had called it, put her behind a few hours. She wondered if he had been waiting forever for her to come on when she saw his username tagged in bold for being online.

Before she had time to muster up a hello message, a text box filled her screen.

**Baskethead14: **_How's the smartest person in the world?_

Gabriella couldn't help but chuckle. Maybe the next time she was deciding a screen name, she wouldn't make it sound like she was a know-it-all.

**Brainiac824: **_Great. How's the best basketball player?_

**Baskethead14: **_I'm not the best, I'll give that piece of information to you, but I'm feeling great. _

Troy leaned back onto the bed's headboard, looking at the plain walls around him. The familiar message arrival sound filtrated through the silent room.

**Brainiac824: **_That's… Great._

The two chuckled simultaneously.

In a different building across a walkway from Troy, Gabriella let herself get captured in talking to this person. They hadn't had a long talk in awhile. From talking about how they were, to reasons why they hadn't been online in so long, why it felt like so long…

It only took a glance at her empty schedule for the weekend that Gabriella decided it was time to pluck up the courage to try to meet him again.

**Brainiac824: **_Hey, do you think we should try to meet up again?_

On the other end, Troy bit the inside of his cheek, deliberating on how to respond. Of course he wanted to… but he had intended for Gabriella to simply forget about Baskethead and…

He realized he had no real reason for her to forget Baskethead. Or… did he really want her to simply befriend _him_? She had already admitted that she had fallen for the person she conversed with. Had she technically already fallen for him? But, she thought this was a different person.

Troy bounced back and forth with the argument in his head, though it seemed to come full circle.

"Stupid double identity," he muttered to himself. There was only one answer that would seal their fate.

**Baskethead14: **_Yes, I really think we should.

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_

**These chapters are getting insanely long! The rest of them are all (I believe, at my last check) falling over three thousand words. There is a lot to tell, especially in the last few. I won't tell you all how many chapters there are in all... That _will_ remain a surprise! Wish me luck on my permit test tomorrow... I turned fifteen back in August, but I procrastinated studying. That's why I haven't gotten around to updating this in time for New Year's. Craming... I'm so nervous... And with Area Auditons Friday...**

**Okay, enough of my problems. Thanks for reading! **


	9. VIII: Forget the Rules

**I needed to get this chapter out of the way. Thanks for all of your encouraging reviews – they always make me smile! ****

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Chapter VIII: Forget the Rules**

Dozing off in the soft light of his dorm room, Troy drummed his fingers repeatedly against the surface of his laptop. The screen still held the boxed conversation, which he had centered in the middle of the screen. His desktop picture of an empty basketball court was slightly covered by the window placed in the center, framing the plan that had been discussed minutes before.

The loud song that Troy used as his cell phone ringtone shook him out of his daze. He flipped the phone out from his jeans pocket, looking curiously at the semi-familiar number. He knew he'd seen it before… but since it wasn't in his cell phone, the caller ID was simply 'Unknown Name'

"Hello?" He answered casually, hoping that Chad hadn't posted his number on the campus bulletin board again. Last time he had done that, it had caused him to change his cell phone number (not to mention Chad had to do so to, because he did the same with Chad's number a week later).

"Troy?" The sweet voice replied.

"Gabriella?" Troy's tone immediately lightened. That's where he had seen the number before! It was written on a piece of paper that had been shoved in his book bag.

"Oh, good, it's you!" She giggled.

"Who did you think it was?" He raised his eyebrows, although he knew she couldn't see the expression.

"You just sound different over the phone."

"That's funny," Troy smirked and let sarcasm drip heavy in his voice. "You don't. Same squeaky voice."

"Ha-ha," she stretched the phrase into two words, and Troy could just picture her rolling her eyes on the other end. "Anyway, I wanted to tell you something."

"Go for it," Troy had a vague idea of the topic she was about to bring up.

"I asked _him_ to meet me!" he could hear the squeal letting itself out in small increments in the sentence.

"That's great!" Troy laughed at his own part in the mixture. "But I don't hear your roommate screaming on the other end… Is she not excited?"

"Well, she's… out right now." Gabriella sounded as if she was looking for an excuse. In truth, Taylor was in her own room, leaving Gabriella in the silence she wanted.

"Oh," Troy shrugged it off. "Anyway, that's great…"

"Yeah…" Gabriella let the words hang on the phone, wondering where to take the conversation.

After a brief period of silence, Troy spoke again. "Just so I know how to be a better listener, what would a girl do at this point in a conversation?"

"Umm…" Gabriella thought for a second. "Ask for details."

"Then give me some details," Troy smiled, hoping Gabriella could hear the playful tone to his voice. She did.

"Well, I asked him and…" she searched for words. "He said he thought it was a good idea."

Troy chucked to himself smugly, like a five-year-old who knew a secret, and looked through the conversation window to see if Gabriella was going to edit. Gabriella, on the other end, was trying her best to think of words that wouldn't be editing the story very much.

She had already logged off; too afraid he would back out at the last second. She was sitting at the desk in her room, watching her feet fidget on the carpet. Her toes curled together to keep warm. Gabriella glanced around to see if any socks were lying anywhere near. Before she got up, Troy spoke once more.

"That's wouldn't be the only information you would give to Taylor, now would it?" He asked, smirking to himself. "Day?"

"Saturday," Gabriella whispered, barely audible. Troy had already known the answer, but he was curious to see if Gabriella was going to be fully honest with him.

"Time…?"

"Five in the afternoon," she let out a deep breath. Did he think it was too early?

"Place?" He already knew the answer.

"The fountain by the library," Gabriella spilled, though she had hesitated about Troy being informed on the meeting. He could hear the uncertainty in her voice.

"Gabriella, I'm not going to stalk you there. You can tell me," he laughed. Gabriella felt embarrassed at how he had read so much from her voice. How did he manage to do that? Little did she know that he was looking at the very instant messaging conversation she continued to glance at.

"No, it's just… um…" She stumbled around for words, trying to think of a logical excuse. "I've never talked to a guy about meeting another guy before."

"Well, then this calls for a celebration. How about you meet me outside the dorm buildings Saturday morning around eleven? We'll walk around campus, grab some lunch, get some ice cream, and maybe see a movie or something." His voice bled with hope, leaving Gabriella flattered about how much he seemed to want to spend the special occasion with her.

"Sure!" After her enthusiastic answer, she noticed how much she also wanted to spend time with him. She hoped her voice didn't sound too eager (the last thing she wanted was for him to think she was 'clingy'), so she settled for a vague follow-up. "Or… um… if I'm not spending the day with Taylor…"

"Then I'll kidnap you." He laughed. "You can play clueless."

Gabriella paused, unable to find anyway to answer. She had never really had an offer like this before. Guys had never really gone out of their way to spend a day with her. Troy broke the silence for her.

"Oh, come on, I know you're smart, but surely it wouldn't _kill _y– "

"It's not that!" She laughed, interrupting him. "But you have to remember – my high school years were spent studying. I might not be great company."

"No, I've spent time around you long enough to know that's not entirely true," Troy stated matter-of-factly. "Although you do scare me when you freak out because you didn't understand one _little_ question on a test…"

"It's a _test_!" Gabriella hissed, half way amused.

"But you still know you aced it."

"That's besides the point," Gabriella chuckled slightly as a knock sounded on her bedroom door. "Look, I've got to go. Talk to you later?"

Chuckling, Troy nodded his head. "Later."

Gabriella shut her phone, closing out of the instant messaging window and pushing her laptop aside.

"You don't need to knock, you know!" Her answer was bubbly, but her smile faded when Taylor walked in with a very serious face. "What's wrong?" Gabriella's tone changed into a more concerned sound.

"Who were you talking to?" Taylor asked with honest curiosity.

"Um… Troy," Gabriella tilted her head in a different direction. "Why do you ask?"

"That's who I thought…" Taylor thought aloud, biting her lip, sitting down to face Gabriella at her desk's chair. "It's just… Do you ever think of how deep your starting to get with him?"

"Me and Troy?" She shook her head, a little too quickly. "I told you before, it's not like that with us!"

"No, no," Taylor dismissed that opinion with the wave of her hand. "I'm simply talking about your friendship."

"What about it?"

"I'm worried that you're going to get… hurt," Taylor hesitated, choosing her words carefully.

"Whoa – back up here," Gabriella's eyes widened. "Last week, you were teasing me about thinking the guy is hot, now you're lecturing me about not getting too close? Look, Troy won't - "

"What if he's just doing this to get you back for all the things you did to him?" Taylor interrupted, covering her mouth the second the statement rolled off her tongue.

"What are you _talking_ about?" Gabriella couldn't comprehend exactly what Taylor was trying to point out – why would Troy want to get something out of the friendship?

"He could… get close to you," she hesitated, "and get you to spill secrets to him. What if this is just a dare?"

"A… _dare_?"

"You know, he got drunk at a frat party and some idiot dared him to see how much he could get you to trust him," Taylor spoke slow, choosing her words carefully. "I mean, think about it, Troy Bolton was ninety-nine percent of your troubles during high school."

Gabriella sat back, at a loss for words. Taylor had a point: Troy was her biggest problem in high school. But it wasn't like that anymore. If only Taylor would get that into her head.

"Look, Tay," Gabriella took a deep breath. "Troy's been really sincere with me lately. He's told me things that I don't think are common knowledge to the public…" She hesitated again. He had told her personal stories and facts that really weren't 'secrets,' though she had felt good that he had trusted her with some of the embarrassing information.

"Gabriella, I'm not here to start a fight," Taylor shook her head. "But as a friend I really want you to keep a lookout, okay?"

"Fine," Gabriella said shortly. It wasn't her nature to behave so impudently – and to Taylor of all people! Though she wished that Taylor would stop worrying. Taylor had always been like a big sister to her; the best friend that she shared everything with. There was a fine line, however, between older sister and mother.

Taylor left wordlessly, not wanting to push the issue further and drive a wedge in their friendship. She hoped with all of her heart that Troy did have real friendship on his mind. She didn't think Gabriella deserved to be hurt in a way that Taylor had seen her sister get hurt. Her sister had thought she'd finally found a great guy and feel deeply in love with him – only to discover later that he had used her to get to one of her friends.

Gabriella watched Taylor, speechless, as her best friend strode out. She knew that now was probably not the best time to tell Taylor of her new plans for Saturday. Didn't quite understand why things between her and Taylor had gone from happy to sad in such a short time.

Desperate for someone to talk to, she grabbed her phone once again and dialed Troy's number for a second time that day.

"Pizza Hut," he answered in the first ring. Gabriella laughed at his age-old attempt at a prank.

"Yeah, I'll have an extra large pineapple pizza with extra cheese and mushrooms," she played along, hoping the combination was strange enough. A slight pause on the other end of the line before the two began laughing mindlessly.

"I really hope… that's not the kind of pizza… you like!" Troy said between laughs.

"And if it is?" Gabriella challenged.

"Then I'll never ask you what you want for pizza before I order it."

"Fine," Gabriella said with mock bitterness. "It's _not_ the kind of pizza I eat."

"Good," Troy's voice dripped with victory. "So, before you pretty much ordered your dinner tonight, why'd you call?"

"I was bored." Gabriella replied dryly.

"Hmm," Troy shrugged. "I thought the rule was to wait at least an hour."

"That's only…" she paused in thought. Only what? The day a guy gives you their phone number? "Well, forget the rules."

"Is Miss Law-Abiding slash Study Freak breaking rules now?" Troy sounded mockingly shocked. "I'm horrified."

"Shut _up_," Gabriella groaned into a round of giggles. "You're starting to sound like Taylor!"

The thought of Taylor still wasn't a pleasant one at the moment, and Gabriella regretted bringing up the subject while her roommate was still in the dorm. Well, to her knowledge anyway. It wasn't like Taylor to leave the dorm alone in the evening. She was too annoyed from every one of the freshmen that spent most of their days (not to mention nights) partying.

"You sound like you're a bit… upset… with Taylor," Troy chose his words carefully. It didn't sound like her to mention her best friend in a derogatory tone.

"Sort of…" she hesitated. "It's hard to explain over the phone. I'll talk to you about it Saturday, if that's alright."

"Yeah, it's fine." A smile crept onto Troy's face. "But I hope you know that we're going to learn a lot more about each other Saturday."

Gabriella didn't quite understand the comment. What was he talking about?

"Sorry, I didn't follow that."

"I'm personally very curious about the person I overlooked due to annoyance during high school," he grinned. Honestly, he was incredibly curious as to what Gabriella did on weekends, who her friends besides Taylor were, hobbies…

"Oh-_kay_," she stretched out the syllables, sarcastically pointing out that she didn't understand the reason behind it.

Gabriella soon lost track of time as their conversation drifted towards light subjects like the sophomore English teacher's disproportioned ears to deep subjects like future plans and dreams. It was so easy for Gabriella to get caught up in talking to him. They lived in two entirely different worlds, but just happened to share many interests in common.

Troy was getting lost in the conversation as well. He'd never met a girl that who could actually hold his attention for long periods of time. Before he knew it, he was staring at the digital clock on the bedside table that read '10:15'. His eyes widened in surprise.

"Gabriella!" He groaned while she was in the middle of a sentence.

"What?" She sounded a bit concerned, surprised from the interruption.

"It's ten fifteen!"

"You're kidding!" Her mouth dropped open as she glanced at the clock on her wall that read nearly the same time. Had she really been talking to him _that_ long? "I have to work tomorrow morning!"

"I have a test in Trig!" Troy raked his fingers through his hair.

"Oh _crap_!" The two chorused at the same time, earning chuckles.

"Jinx," Troy replied. "You owe me a soda."

"That's the most childish thing I've heard from you in awhile," Gabriella commented, pulling her pajamas out from her dresser drawer. "But now's not the time to argue about that. I'm going to be so _tired_ – "

"Calm down," Troy soothed while Gabriella was in a frantic rush to get herself ready for bed when she really didn't want to hang up the phone. "I guess I'll see you Saturday. Or after class on Friday… or - "

"Yeah, bye!" Gabriella giggled, shutting the phone and pulling on her favorite pair of flannel bottoms and an old camp T-shirt. In her frenzy, she practically sped into the bathroom – not at all surprised the dorm room was dark. Taylor, unlike her, had been smart and retreated to bed early.

Just a few minutes later, Gabriella found herself getting into bed. Her body ached for a bit of rest while her brain was still moving at a hundred miles an hour.

Never, in all of her twenty years of life, had she talked to someone on a phone for three hours straight without much of a silence. Had she really been talking _that_ much? She groaned, hoping that she didn't embarrass herself with endless babble. But Troy hadn't seemed to mind…

The more she thought about it, the more she realized that her and Troy's friendship was turning out to be an entirely new experience.

Her lips curved into a small grin while sleep was soon to overcome her.

_Her and Troy_

In the moments before she fell into a peaceful slumber, she noticed exactly how much she was beginning to like the thought of his name next to hers.

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**Yeah, nothing much happening right now. You're probably curious as to why Taylor is getting really reluctant towards Troy, and let me explain before you rattle off reviews about tasteless sub-plots: if my best friend was starting to get really close to the guy she loathed for years, I wouldn't just pass it off with a shrug. I would make sure this guy isn't going to hurt her – Gabriella's a little blinded now, if you know what I mean, and Taylor's the one thinking logically, if you look at it from her standpoint.**

**Oh, and I posted a _Twilight_ oneshot for those of you who read those books. **


	10. IX: What Could've Been

**So, as you can see, I changed my penname to a much shorter and easier to remember one. My other one I felt was obnoxiously long and was an impulsive change.'Little J' is my nickname, and the 'M' I always add on when the first is already taken. I use this username on every other site but this one, and I felt it was time for one final change. It should stay this way for quite awhile, since I'm pretty fond of it. **

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**Chapter IX: What Could've Been**

The days passed at an unusually slow pace for Gabriella as her brain worked in overdrive. Her calendar's days – marked off in auspicious red – finally began closing in on the blank space marked Saturday. Not quick enough for Gabriella, though.

Her reading for History, English, and double Biology were finished at an astounding rate. Despite her busy schedule, Gabriella actually found herself anxious. Her and Taylor had steered through an awkward few days, with only a few sentences and a nod here and there. Taylor seemed to be taking more and more overtime, and Gabriella was spending increasing amounts of time in her room or walking through campus alone. During this newfound free time, Gabriella took the time to worry about their friendship.

Was this normal? They'd never really gone through something like this. Of course they'd had fights, but this amount of time in awkward conversations were just… strange. She hadn't acted surprised in the least when Gabriella had mentioned she was going to meet Baskethead. It was strange to not be able to confide to Taylor after a long day.

As Gabriella readied herself for her Saturday with Troy (that had finally arrived), she tried her best to reassure herself that the entire thing would blow over and their routine would get back to normal. She was running a bit late since she had tried to make an effort with doing her hair.

She blinked at herself in the mirror. Her hair was not going to cooperate, so with a futile sigh, Gabriella pulled the dark curls back into a ponytail. She was never very thrilled with the way she looked when she was going out, especially without commentary from her best friend. Still, she sighed and continued on with her touch-ups.

"Anyone home?" A familiar voice followed by a knock at her dorm room door caused Gabriella to jump. The eyeliner she had just put on smeared across the right side of her face.

"Coming!" She hurried to the door, using her arm to try to wipe off the line under her right temple.

She flung the door open, sending Troy a glare that could kill. Instantly, he saw the eyeliner that Gabriella was trying to wipe off and cracked a wide grin before he began laughing. He was completely clueless on why there was a dark line pulling away from her right eye; he just thought that the sight of it was funny.

"It's your fault," Gabriella muttered when she pulled Troy into her room before anyone could see her and the smeared make-up.

"How is it my fault?" Troy put up his hands in innocence. "I didn't do anything accept come to ask why you didn't meet up with me ten minutes ago!"

"You were _supposed_ to meet me outside! You never surprise a girl when she's putting on makeup!" She tried to send another glare his way, but the boyish grin plastered across his face only sent her into a fit of giggles.

"I forgot how much concentration it takes to draw a straight line across your eyelid," Troy replied sarcastically, waiting for Gabriella's laughter to subside.

"You've obviously never tried," Gabriella wiggled thee eyeliner stick in front of his smug face and walked back into the bathroom to finish wiping off the smear.

"Is that a bad thing?" Troy asked with raised eyebrows, sitting down on the couch.

"I guess not, actually."

Troy laughed once more, waiting patiently for Gabriella. Once she was finished, they picked up on their conversation as they walked into the clear April day.

"So…" Troy looked around, his blue eyes glittering with ideas. "Movies, ice cream, or lunch?"

"You decide," Gabriella replied. She honestly didn't care.

"Lunch it is, then," he rubbed his stomach eagerly. "How about the deli a few blocks away? My treat."

"That's fine with me," she nodded, following his lead as they walked to the edge of the campus.

There was no need to drive to a place that was so close, not to mention the great conditions of warm, favorable weather and sunshine that the late morning had brought. Gabriella walked light heartedly beside Troy, ignoring the occasional stare they would earn from someone who knew them. Well, mostly from people who knew Troy.

They ordered their food and found themselves sitting outside at a table covered by a wide yellow and white umbrella. Gabriella chewed her Italian sandwich slowly as Troy watched her with interest.

"Aren't you going to eat?" She asked, referring to his untouched meatball sub. _The messiest thing on the menu_ – as she had cheekily pointed out when they ordered.

"Oh, yeah," he smiled sheepishly. "Just thinking of questions I could ask you."

"Questions?" Gabriella cocked her head sideways.

"I told you we were going to learn a lot about each other! Isn't that how you start with friendship?" His smile was crooked as he took the first bite of his sandwich. "I'm very curious."

"Well, ask away," she took another bite.

Over the next hour, Gabriella and Troy took turns fire out some of the most random questions the two had ever asked. They asked each other about the other's worst date, their favorite childhood moments, even the places they would most like to visit (which Troy answered Roswell – he wanted to tell the aliens to take Chad back).

Gabriella ended up laughing at every one of Troy's answers. He was so easy to be around and be friends with. She felt a bit self-conscious around him, as most of her answers and accompanying stories were very boring compared to his sporadic and goofy answers. Most of her answers were practical, and required a few pauses to explain a vocabulary word to Troy (which had, ironically gotten them into the subject of SAT scores – it was then Troy's turn to feel slightly sheepish).

When both ran out of questions, Troy casually glanced at his watch.

"It's nearly one. Ice cream?" His face lit up with childhood excitement.

"As long as it's _my treat_," Gabriella stressed, grabbing her purse and getting up to throw away the extraneous paper and bag that had come along with their food.

"Oh, come on," Troy nearly begged, following Gabriella as she strode away. "It's not very polite to let the girl treat you to something when the whole outing was your idea!"

"But when she offers…" Gabriella smirked. They rounded the corner to the ice cream shop that was down the street from the deli.

"It's –"

"Tolerable," Gabriella interrupted, finishing his sentence. "This _is_ the twenty-first century."

"Fine," Troy crossed his arms in an attempt at being stubborn. They unfolded so he could open the door for Gabriella. "Might as well do what I can to be a gentleman," he whispered in her ear as she strode past.

They approached the counter, where Troy took the initiative to speak first. He ordered one of the concoctions that contained the least nutritional value of any of the preceding ice cream combinations – double fudge ice cream, triple chocolate brownie chunks, and topping off with chocolate syrup. To Gabriella's immediate surprise, he didn't give her time to order anything as he very nearly pulled her down the line.

"We share," he whispered into her ear for the second time that day. His breath sent shivers down her spine and tickled the inside of her ear.

He smirked as he attempted to pay for it, earning a shove from Gabriella (which effected him very little – he only moved to avoid upsetting her). She glared at him once more as the cashier rang up for the ice cream in the cone bowl. She handed it to Troy, who continued eyeing it greedily all the way to the table.

"Jerk," Gabriella muttered.

"Mmm-hum-hm," Troy spoke with his mouth full of ice cream. Gabriella took a much more modest bite, nearly choking once a very familiar look crossed her friend's face. It was pained, his eyes wide in shock as his hands flew to his mouth.

She burst into giggles when Troy took a large gulp to try to bring down the mouthful.

"_Brain freeze_!" His hands massaged his temples when he could finally speak. He honestly didn't care at that point in time that he had just gotten the attention of the entire shop. Gabriella's eyes were on him, and he found it was a pleasant place to be.

"Well, that's what you get," Gabriella replied curtly once her laughter was under control.

"For what?"

"For one, trying to pay for the ice cream when I clearly stated it was my treat. Second, for ordering the unhealthiest thing on the menu!" She crossed her arms in an imitation of Troy's earlier episode. In addition, she stuck out her bottom lip. "And you're going to promise me you'll never do that again."

"N-no!" His reply was weak as his forehead creased in thought. He sighed. "Don't do that to me!"

"Do what?" Gabriella batted her eyelashes innocently.

"That stuck-out lip and staring at me like that!" He cringed. "You know how hard it is to say no to that?"

"So you _do_ have a weak spot."

"I didn't say that!" He replied all too quickly.

"Whatever," Gabriella replied in a tone that wasn't at all convincing that she believed him. She had an edge over him now. She continued eating her ice cream in silence, occasionally putting her spoon down to avoid getting a brain freeze like the one Troy had just experienced.

Soon, Gabriella sat back and groaned.

"What's wrong?" Troy asked carefully through another mouthful of ice cream.

"It's so _big_," Gabriella motioned toward the ice cream with about half of its original structure left, which Troy was downing faster than she could think. Her stomach seemed to grumble in protest every time she took a bite.

"This little thing?" He shrugged and took another huge spoonful. "You've apparently never seen the basketball team eat."

"I saw you eat all that pizza last week," she laughed. "But I've never seen anybody eat like you."

The ice cream continued to diminish into a small pile as Troy continued to eat it with Gabriella helping with a bite every now and then. Finally, they got down to the last two spoonfuls.

"Want to do the honors?" he asked Gabriella as he halved the little piece left.

"Let's both finish it off," she scooped up the piece with her spoon as the two of them raised the spoons to their mouths. "One, two… three!"

"Done!" Troy threw his spoon in the empty bowl and stretched his arms above his head. Gabriella chewed the small chunk of brownie left in her spoonful, then swallowed and groaned again.

"I don't think I'll ever eat again!" She folded her arms across her chest.

"Oh, not even for some popcorn at the movies next?" Troy laughed as Gabriella's eyes widened in contrast. He picked up the bowl and the napkins that were left over. Gabriella followed to catch up with him to the door and they left together.

"You honestly can't be hungry after all of _that_," she shook her head in amazement.

"I didn't eat breakfast this morning," he licked his lips. "So, movies next. It's only two, so we can drive across town and back with plenty of time."

"What are we going to see?" Gabriella nodded when they started back towards the campus. Troy shoved his hands in his pockets and breathed in a sigh of the fresh air.

"Doesn't matter," he shrugged. "Chick flick?"

"You'd sit through one?" She didn't know if she could picture Troy, sitting in the movies, watching a chick flick.

"Possibly," he smirked. "Depends on how hot the lead actress is."

The comment earned him a smack on the shoulder from Gabriella. His took his hands out of his pockets to rub the spot on the arm that she had hit him on. They arrived at the campus and Troy lead the way to the parking lot where his car was parked.

Using his 'being a gentleman' excuse once again, he opened the passenger side door for Gabriella in his truck. When he hopped into the driver's seat, he noticed that Gabriella was looking down into the floor with a look of disgust.

"What's wrong?"

"Troy! Do you not know what's in this car?" She motioned to the floor where he spotted his practice jersey and towel that he'd used the other day for practice. He started the car and was pulling out of the parking lot, highly amused at Gabriella's expression.

"Hey!" He smiled a crooked smile. "I was looking for those! There's nothing wrong with it."

"Ugh! Sweat!" Gabriella sat on the very edge of the seat to avoid the set of gym clothes on the floor. She was not trying to hide her repulsion. Troy rolled his eyes, balled up the clothes, and stuffed them behind the seat.

"Happy now?" He sat back, trying to pay attention to the road and Gabriella at the same time.

"Men are disgusting," she concluded.

"Well… Women never have much fun," Troy replied with a smug grin. They sat in silence for a bit until Troy plucked up the courage to ask her something he'd wanted to ask all day. "So… What's been going on with you and Taylor?"

The soft edge in his voice surprised Gabriella. He was actually concerned about the two. His car rolled to a stop at a traffic light.

"She's just… being protective," Gabriella tried to shrug if off, feeling self-conscious again when he gazed at her.

"…About?"

"She's worried that…" Gabriella scoured for words. "Our friendship is going to end and it's going to be ten times worse than before. It's sort of… made things awkward." So that really wasn't the entire deal… it was the best way to make the situation sound. Or, so Gabriella thought.

"Oh, that can't be possible," Troy smirked at her, as if he was about to explain some large-scale revelation. "You see, you're stuck with me now. I've never seen a girl that's not revolted by my eating habits. Besides, Chad and I fight all the time. We're over it in a few days."

Gabriella felt relieved how light he was making the subject. Suddenly, Taylor's worries and their friendship problems didn't seem that bad. It would blow over.

"I _am_ revolted," she responded lightly, changing the subject. "I just try to ignore it."

"And see," he turned into the movie theater parking lot. "_That's_ why you've had the pleasure of spending the day with the oh-so fabulous _me_."

"You sound like Sharpay Evans," Gabriella retorted as she opened the door to the car and jumped out. Troy simply laughed and climbed out of his truck.

The two approached the movie theater, eyeing the 'Now Playing' board and getting movie ideas.

"How about that new horror movie?" She asked, having no idea what kind of movies Troy was into.

"Nah," he shook his head. "Last time I brought a girl to that kind of movie, they threw up in my lap."

After a few short arguments over the pros and cons of every movie in the theater's list, they settled for the chick flick Troy had hinted at earlier. Neither really had much interest in seeing it, but they got their tickets (upon agreeing that Gabriella would pay for Troy's ticket and Troy would pay for Gabriella's ticket) and entered the movie theater regardless. Troy refused to take her to see things that contained blood and gore, while Gabriella did not want to see a watered-down G-rated movie.

Gabriella continued to object to getting popcorn from how full she still was, so Troy gave in with little argument and followed her into the dim movie room. It wasn't until she sat down in the too comfortable seat did she wish that she had gotten more sleep last night.

Her previous worries and overall anticipation for the next day had kept her awake until well past when she wanted to sleep. The previews rolled and advertised various movies coming out within the next year. Gabriella strained to stay awake.

The opening credits rolled.

Gabriella's mind was slowing. It kept coaxing her that it would be okay to miss a few minutes on the movie… Just close her eyes for a few seconds…

Troy sat in silence, completely unaware of Gabriella's little issue. From the first few minutes of the movie, he was finding himself a little more interested than an average male should be in a feminine-oriented movie. His motives, however, were very much male-dominated.

"Hey!" Troy whispered as he nudged Gabriella. "That shy girl is _hot_ and I – Gabriella?"

The brunette's head had fallen gently on his shoulder from the nudge. Her breathing was light and relaxed… and her eyes were closed. Troy sighed. How could a movie be any fun when he couldn't argue with Gabriella over petty details? Or how could it be any fun, in his usual case, without throwing popcorn with Chad at people making-out in front of them.

He shrugged and put his arm around her, trying to pay attention to the movie. Sometimes, he'd comment on the occasional movie mistake or bad acting for his own amusement, half hoping that Gabriella would wake up, and half hoping that she would stay there for the remainder of the movie.

The climax (and not to mention the super-fluffy kissing scene) passed, much to Troy's utter displeasure on how the girl he'd complimented on earlier was taken by such a strange looking man. The final scene played before them, the lights brightened, and then the credits came. Gabriella was still snoring softly on his shoulder.

"Sleepyhead," he whispered in her ear. Gabriella shot up from the tickle in her ear. Her sleep-driven eyes adjusted to the screen and widened in shock.

"Did I - "

"Sleep through the entire movie?" Troy raised his eyebrows. "Yes."

"I'm _so_ sorry, Troy!" She sighed and got up from her warm spot on the seat.

"I'll say," he rolled his eyes when they walked out of the room. "You drooled on my shirt!"

Gabriella, taken aback, defended herself jokingly. "I did not! Look at it!" She motioned to the area on his shoulder that she had occupied. Troy poked at it.

"It dried," he replied lamely. Gabriella shrugged, with little belief in what he had said, and continued walking out the theater. She led the way to his truck, wide-awake and still slightly embarrassed.

"I really am sorry," she confessed sheepishly once they were on the road again. "May I ask how the movie was?"

"It's fine," Troy shrugged, "and the movie was good. The girl was _hot_. Though, she ended up with some lame guy."

"Is that bad?" Gabriella's questioned.

"I thought chick flicks were the other way around," Troy smiled smugly. "A weird girl gets a good-looking guy. Or, so my mom and sister tell me when they get back from the movies."

"Eh, sort of," she chuckled, "but there's still nothing wrong with it."

"It's just weird."

"It is not!" Gabriella defended.

"Is to."

"Is _not_!"

The argument continued like that, growing more and more stubborn at every stoplight. They entered the student parking lot, still arguing to the death, with Troy clicking the locks on the doors when he parked.

"What was that for?" Gabriella tried, with a futile effort, to open her door. His truck had no lock-control device on the passenger side.

"You're not getting out until you admit that one of those relationships is weird." He folded his hands across his chest and put the car into park.

"You know I have somewhere to be!" Gabriella accused, springing across the seat to reach the unlocking button on the driver's side door. Troy pushed her away with little required effort as she struggled against his well-trained strength.

"Admit it," his eyes danced with pure amusement.

"No."

"Fine." Troy sat back comfortably, eyeing the cloudless sky out the window. It took two minutes for Gabriella to begin to panic and give in to her pride.

"Okay," she sighed. "It's weird."

"Great!" he unlocked the door happily; swung open his door, and hopped out. He waited while Gabriella opened her door stubbornly. She was clearly unhappy as they walked back to the dorms. Troy shoved his hands into his pockets and whistled obnoxiously.

When they reached the entrance, Troy stopped his whistling and turned to face Gabriella. She waited for him to start with the good-byes for the day.

"That was… fun," he replied with a sly smile.

"Yeah," she nodded in agreement. "Thanks for everything."

"Anytime," he spoke. Gabriella began to turn away, and he suddenly blurted out, "Uh, Gabriella?"

"Yes?" She asked, turning to face a completely transformed face. This Troy wasn't the go-along confident that she had been with the past few hours. His tone was… uncertain? Was that really what was etched over his face?

"I was just… thinking…" He rubbed his arm with a shrug.

"Amazing," Gabriella muttered. Troy grinned.

"Yeah, I know, amazing," he retorted with a laugh he didn't bother to hold back. "But I really was thinking… about today… about how great we really get along."

Gabriella stood there and smiled unsurely, her heart racing in her chest. Was he about to…?

"And I just thought…" His voice became weak. "What could've been? What would've happened if we hadn't gotten off to such a rough start in high school? It's so… amazing to think of what we could've become. Maybe…"

"I – I…" Gabriella stuttered out. No. How could he _do_ this to her? She was about to meet someone that had seemed to understand every piece of her mind; the one person who she admitted that appealed to her. He _knew_ that. "I can't do this now, Troy."

His face dropped slightly and he shrugged. "Okay. I guess I'll see you in class Monday."

"Monday," Gabriella agreed, walking away to avoid another awkward silence.

She had known it all along. She had known that if she kept going along that it would come to this. Why didn't it feel wrong? Why didn't it feel that she needed to separate her friendships with Troy and Baskethead and quit letting them intermingle? Why did it take so long to admit it all to herself?

Because in admitting all of that, she would have to also admit the one thing that she had sensed from the start.

She had fallen for Troy. Hard.

But what made it worse were the words that kept ringing in her head.

What _could_ have been?

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**I really havea good answer for why all of these take so long - the epilogue. I've said numerous times that this story is pretty much written, all I do is edit what I've already done. But, you see, I've planned out so many scenarios for the epilogue that once I finish one, I reread it, hate it, and try again. I tell myself not to get too close to finishing this story without one that I really like. Mix all of this writing in with homework and band, and updates get scarce. No worries, though, the wait shouldn't be too long again. I'vegot a pretty good idea on which one will be posted. **

**I'm really, really particularof this chapter... It's one of my favorites (though I can't really give you a comparison to my other favorites because... well... those haven't happened yet!). Virtual cookies to who can guess which two book characters (one from Twilight, one from a Sarah Dessen book) that Troy's personality is based off of. (Hint: It's not Edward and it's not Wes). **


	11. X: What a Coincidence

**I felt this chapter was kind of rushed, but I found no way of fixing it besides rewriting it, and we all know how long that will postpone updates. So, this is how it turned out. Actually, I realized after going back and rereading the entire story, that I left out a key event in this chapter to begin with and had to go and write it back into this and the next chapter. So, yeah, I feel kind of dumb now... Anyways, enjoy!**

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_**Chapter X: What a Coincidence**

_How could he try something like this when he _knew_ how important today was to me? _

A solemn, and not to mention incredibly confused, Gabriella returned to her room to find Taylor waiting uncertainly at the door, with a look that resembled a spring ready to uncoil. The second Gabriella had the door open, she found her best friend with her arms flung around her own neck.

"I'm so sorry," were the words that rushed into her ear, while Gabriella's body stiffened. "I never meant for any of this to escalate this far… I've missed you so much! You have to tell me everything! I can't believe I'm so stubborn... Can you ever forgive me?" The words were a jumble, but Gabriella got the point.

"It's… fine…" she replied carefully, blinking in astonishment. "I mean, we're both _really_ stubborn sometimes."

"I'll say," Taylor shook her head grimly, pulling Gabriella back inside their dorm room. "So, how was your day out?" It seemed she was dying for some sort of subject change. Strange as it was, how they had made up so quickly, it seemed to Gabriella that it the way best friends fight. Nothing seriously confrontational, just silence. It was the _worst_ kind of silence. Maybe Troy had been right after all.

"It was good until the end," she tried to calm herself in front of Taylor's questioning gaze. "He… asked me what we could've been if we had never gotten off to such a rough start." The words came out so fast, they were more of a flood of syllables, but somehow, Taylor managed to catch all of them.

"So?" She raised her eyebrows. It was strange how awkward it had been in front of Taylor that morning, and now she was being herself once more. Well, to say the least, it was _still_ a little bit awkward. Apparently, though, Gabriella was the only one feeling it.

"It's just… Both of us know what the initial goal was," Gabriella fell back onto the couch with her head in her hands. "It's so difficult… Why did he want to complicate things _now_?"

"It's only complicating if you look at it that way," Taylor smiled weakly, hoping to cheer her friend up. "Let's not think that way now. You have a big meeting to get ready for."

Gabriella glanced at the time. There was still plenty of time for her to get ready.

"I have tons of time, Taylor."

"Not on my watch," Taylor put her hands on her hips. "Now, go get dressed. I'll meet you in the bathroom. We can play catch-up talk later."

"But - " Gabriella began, shocked. Now, it seemed as if the entire silence issue had never taken place. To unknowing eyes, they could've been giggling over boys that morning, instead of strategically ignoring each other.

"_Now_," her best friend warned. That was all it took for Gabriella to walk into her bedroom and start filing through her closet.

There wasn't much to choose from, since she had two extreme forms of dressing: her normal every-day clothes and her dresses. She did own some longer skirts, but it was a nice day and discomfort was out of the question. So, since she decided that high heels were completely out of the question, she picked out a darker, yet newer, pair of Capri pants and one of her tank tops. Nothing extreme, as she had promised herself. It was just a meeting of two friends.

She realized this was a grave mistake the second she walked into the bathroom. It looked like Taylor's old bathroom had looked the afternoon before prom. The second clue she got was Taylor's highly disapproving stare she received once her best friend turned around.

"Do I really need to act like your mother again?" She asked as Gabriella, wide-eyed, wordlessly shook her head. "Well, I think I do, because you are _not_ going in that."

"This is all I have!" Gabriella defended while Taylor ignored her and took her arm, pulling her best friend back to her closet.

After a few minutes of shuffling through the depths of Gabriella's closet, Taylor pulled away with a triumphant "Aha!"

"What?" Gabriella craned her neck when her best friend pulled the hanger out.

"This!" Taylor shoved the item into Gabriella's hands.

"No." She said defiantly.

"Why not?" Crooking her head to the side, Taylor gazed at the object. A denim skirt, fanning out a few inches down, that was a little shorter than knee-length. "You've never worn it."

"Because every time I sit down, you can see right up it!" Gabriella waved her arms around wildly, like the world would end if someone were to see up her skirt. Taylor rolled her eyes.

"Then don't sit down."

"You're not helping."

Taylor simply grinned, returning to her rummaging of Gabriella's closet. In a much shorter amount of time than it had taken her to find the skirt, she produced a modest navy blue shirt with some intricate beadwork on the front.

"Better?" She asked bluntly, raising an eyebrow. Gabriella nodded slowly, still a little hazed from the idea of actually wearing the skirt.

Without a word, Taylor put the shirt in her friend's hands and left. Reluctantly, Gabriella changed into her given clothes, thinking briefly of ways to escape through the window. When each idea consisted of falls from various heights, she stopped thinking about it altogether.

With a last glace toward the window, Gabriella walked slowly from her room and turned into the shared bathroom with a sigh. This was going to be interesting...

--

"I'm a genius, aren't I?"

One hour, three hairstyles, two arguments, and countless refusals later, Taylor eyed Gabriella's transformation into what she called 'date mode.' Gabriella, her mouth almost dangling open, was staring at the girl in the mirror, whom she refused to admit was her reflection. She honestly hadn't expected such a transformation when Taylor had turned the chair around earlier.

"If you keep your mouth open like that, you're going to drool and get it all over your skirt," Taylor said, watching in half-amusement as her best friend abruptly shut her mouth. Gabriella was still heavily transfixed on the curious stare of the girl in the mirror.

This girl was most certainly _not_ Gabriella Montez.

Her shirt, though with a small neck, clung to her and accented her torso in all the right places, also making the exposed skin of her arms glow in comparison. The skirt, even as displeasing the idea of wearing it was, accented the tan on her legs. But the most amazing of all, was her face.

Two deep eyes gazed back at Gabriella, with supported only a thin layer of eyeliner and a shiny layer of lip-gloss. Improvising for the rest of her make-up was her hair. Thick curls tumbled down the side of her face and to her shoulders – much bouncier than she would usually fix them. To top it all off, a shimmering layer of hairspray was still drying, promising to keep the curls in place no matter what.

All in all, it was the dressiest 'casual' look that Gabriella had ever sported.

"Well?" Taylor waited impatiently for a response.

"You have a promising future as a cosmetologist," was the only response that she could come up with. It was still too hard to look away from the mysterious girl looking back from the reflection.

"Ew, no," Taylor wrinkled her nose. "I am _not_ going to be a forty-year-old woman with insanely tall hair and an obnoxious chewing gum habit."

"Not all of them are," Gabriella replied in their defense, finally tearing her eyes away from the mirror and strolling out of the bathroom to sit down on the couch. She shifted uneasily, pulling the skirt down a little lower to help cover more of her legs.

"I know," Taylor nodded, ignoring Gabriella's attempts to make the skirt modest, "but that's what usually happens."

Gabriella shrugged before leaning back to rest her head on the couch.

"Careful!" Taylor hissed when her best friend started leaning back onto the couch. Gabriella shot up, eyes growing wide. "That hairspray can hold through rain and snow, but don't you _dare_ test it against weight!"

There was a second of silence that it took her best friend to let the words sink in.

Finally, Gabriella's shoulders relaxed a bit and let out a sigh of relief, "You didn't have to scare me like that, you know. The way you said that made it sound like I was about to sit on some ancient artifact, not screw up a few curls."

"I worked long and hard on those curls, thank you very much," Taylor huffed.

"And I do thank you for that," Gabriella reassured with a pleased sigh. "Maybe having a motherly best friend isn't so bad after all."

All Taylor could do was laugh at the statement. She fell down on the couch beside her best friend.

"It's good to have you back," she sighed. "No matter how much I don't like the way things are going, I really can't risk losing my best friend over it."

Gabriella pulled her friend into another hug. "I know. I worried about it constantly."

"Nice to know I'm not the only one prone to overreactions," Taylor sheepishly smiled as they pulled apart.

"In fact," Gabriella noted, "I fell asleep at the movies because I was thinking about this whole ordeal all last night."

"No _way_," Taylor's eyes widened. She received a nod from her friend. As she saw Gabriella's mouth open to begin explaining more, she saw the clock mounted on the wall and gasped. "Gabriella! You need to go!"

She, too, glanced at the clock and bolted up. They had been so caught up in the moments and they had taken longer than originally thought. Taylor shoved Gabriella's purse into her friend's shaking hands as she pulled the door open and hurrying with her friend out the door. There was no time to be anxious now, she just need to get there, and _fast_.

"I'll ask for the details later," Taylor concluded when they reached the bottom of the stairs in record time. The main doors of the dorm building were busy on the Saturday afternoon, with guests and family milling around the reception area, while students went to meet them.

"I assumed as much," Gabriella giggled. "If things go well, I'll call and see if you want to come to dinner later, okay?"

"Sounds like a plan," Taylor agreed before giving her friend one final shove out the door. With a wave, Gabriella was off. She pushed through some of the crowds, who didn't seem to move quiet fast enough, until she reached the door.

Outside in the warm, sunny atmosphere, she had time to think. In this case, thinking time was very, very bad. Her mood instantly changed – from eager anticipation to nervous worry.

Her feet guided her along the snaking pathways on the campus, taking step after step without much connection to her brain. Could it really be that she was nervous? Anyone would be nervous, really – this was the friend in the opposite sex that she had always wanted – but was this sinking feeling going to ruin everything? Would she really bolt off in the other direction if her feet would listen to her brain?

Every 'what if' question she could conjure up – especially the bad ones – drown her mind in the horrors of what might await when she reached her destination.

What if he was much older than her? What if he thought her skirt was too short? What if he didn't even show up, again? What if she wasn't what he expected?

The biggest question, though, was what if he was already taken? There might already be a girl out there who had been lucky enough to catch him available.

Gabriella had lectured herself during the hour-long bathroom imprisonment with Taylor that she shouldn't expect anything right away. They hadn't even seen each other face-to-face! She couldn't expect to pull and Juliet and fall into some man's arms that she never really knew. Still, she would feel so much more comfortable if he was single. Outside relationships could complicate things, and she had already received her fair share of drama in high school.

Which, somehow, in all of this, brought her back to Troy Bolton. How he tied into this complex mess was a mystery, but Gabriella knew that he was in her life now. The lines and boundaries that usual friendships consisted of didn't seem to apply to them – it was like they had known each other for years.

The clearing came into view and Gabriella's stomach flip-flopped, and her breathing became unsteady. Her mind was a jumble, and it was clear it would stay that way until the moment of truce arrived. Yet, another, more agonizing 'what if' came to mind.

What if he wasn't the person that he had acted towards her? Could he really be a fake? He knew so much… she didn't know how someone could pull off such a convincing lie and get away with it for so long. Sure, she had always been a trusting person…

Gabriella swallowed hard when the reached the fountain. Not one person was in sight, so she took a spot to stand at the base of the fountain, following Taylor's earlier advice to not sit down in the skirt.

She purposefully didn't look into the waters – she still couldn't believe that she really was the same person as the reflection – and her eyes wandered around the cobblestone paved circle, lined with benches. A bicycler passed by a few moments later, nodding in Gabriella's general direction. She saw nothing about him that could resemble he was Baskethead.

The one thing she was looking for was a book – _A Rose for Melinda_, to be exact, like last time – which he had promised to bring to distinguish himself. No little pink book was anywhere on the biker as he rode off in another direction.

Suddenly, Gabriella felt someone's presence. It was very instantaneous – one minute she was alone, one minute she knew someone was there.

_It must be him._

Her heart hammered in her chest, so loud that she hoped that he didn't hear. The butterflies sped up

She saw a long shadow approach behind her, revealing a tall figure as they walked toward her. Before she could turn around, before she could speak, or even before she could perceive the event that was taking place, a familiar voice came to her ear. It was a low, sweet voice that chuckled as it began.

"Well, well, what a coincidence."

* * *

**Yeah, I know you guys hate me. But if it cheers you up, the next chapter is ridiculously long ;)**


	12. XI: Cherry on Top

**The chapter got shortened when I decided to split it up a few days ago. Not ridiculously long anymore - just longer than usual. This was the original last chapter, but I decided to take the last bit and expand on it to make a full Chapter 12. So, if you count the epilogue, we have two chapters left. I also realized that I forgot to give the answers to my question waay back in chapter nine. Troy is heavily based on Jacob from _Twilight _(he's so easy to get along with) and Dexter from _This Lullaby _(his easy going personality). Gabriella is just... well, Gabriella. **

** As always, enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter Eleven: Cherry on Top**

Gabriella never thought she would see the day when that old flame of irritation for Troy Bolton would come back. It was that little tingle in her stomach that would make her eyes narrow and her teeth clench down on each other; that urge to let every foul word in every language she knew spill out of her. Just a little spark… and it could spring into a fire.

But now, as she turned around to face her overly cocky 'friend,' that flicker ignited once again. He, of course, had a happy-go-lucky smile plastered across his lips, until his expression turned confused at Gabriella's deadly glare.

First curious, then cautious, then utterly surprised, Troy wondered exactly how to break the news to her. Finally, he decided that he couldn't panic. He needed to just be himself.

"Whoa! What's wrong?" He asked casually, his hands hidden behind his back like a six-year-old playing the 'I have a surprise for you' game.

Two completely different viewpoints, and a horrible misunderstanding came into the making.

All of the events of today came pouring down on Gabriella, to whom Troy's intentions were unknown. She had told him _everything_. Then, he returned earlier today by making all that they had grown into something completely awkward. Now, here he was, crashing the one thing that Gabriella had wanted to do alone. What would Baskethead do if he saw her talking to Troy? He seemed too polite to want to interrupt – and their friendship was teetering on a ledge as it was.

"What's _wrong_?" She responded through her clenched teeth. "You come here with this goofy, overly confident smirk on your face, giving me company the _one time_ I didn't want it and you ask me _what's wrong_? I thought you weren't going to come along!"

His eyes widened in surprise from the outburst. This was not his Gabriella. This was the high school Gabriella – the pessimistic Einsteinette that had a glare that could kill. Some might've been able to send Sharpay Evans running, which wasn't an easy feat from the Queen of Confrontation.

He gulped down the urge to retort an equally rude comment – the first time that urge had flared in quite a while. The only reason he refrained was the knowledge that Gabriella didn't know exactly what he was aware of. He owed her a small bit of leeway, because Troy had to admit, it _did_ look like he was pushing it. She just thought he had come to rain on her parade. He should've taken her reaction into account.

This had been a horrible idea.

"Look, Gabriella, I - "

"Think you should leave?" She remarked with a nervous glance around the area, wincing when the stinging words finally registered in her mind. As she was looking around for any sign of Baskethead, she wondered why was it like her brain was on autopilot. Surely Troy at least deserved her full attention in his explanation as to why he came, even though he promised that he wouldn't.

"No, not exactly," his eyes darkened. "I wanted to give you this," he sighed and pulled the little pink book from behind his back, thrusting it into Gabriella's folded arms. Before she could even look at the rectangular object Troy had given her, he turned to walk off. She watched his hair sling around his head as he shook it. Probably dismissing every last longing he had to get to know Gabriella Montez.

Her stomach dropped a little.

As his body disappeared into the shadow of trees in the pathway, Gabriella quizzically looked at the pink book, the cover a little newer than the worn copy of the same book in her bag – _A Rose for Melinda_. That made no sense whatsoever… _Why_ had he given her…

In half of a second, everything clicked together.

Gabriella's breath caught in her throat.

She had _never_ said anything to Troy about that book. It was one thing she had promised to keep to herself – not even Taylor knew. It was something she wanted to keep special between her and this person. Somehow, though, Troy had known. What she realized, though, was not that he knew about the book, but he knew all along the one thing that she didn't.

_He was Baskethead. _

The coffee shop… He had come. She had given him such a rude introduction, it was no wonder he didn't say anything. It made sense now – the rose, his nice attire, and his open mind to their friendship. Gabriella thought that the night at the coffee shop had never been a very pivotal moment, but really, it had been. Just not for her.

He had known since that very moment, maybe even longer, and all she had done was push him away. Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes, and before Gabriella knew it, they were spilling over the edge. There were no sobs, just endless, salty tears, leaving shimmering streams on her cheeks.

She no longer expected anyone to come, because once again, she had managed to close the door right in his face.

She had just ruined every chance she had with the perfect person. Well, he wasn't perfect, but he was the closest thing she had. He had brought full laughter into her life (she had never laughed so much with a guy, much less had so much fun with, before Troy came along). Sure, she had those giggling girl moments with Taylor, but there was still a noticeable difference.

Letting the back of her legs fall onto the cool stone lining the fountain, she pulled a tissue out of her purse and dabbed the corners of her eyes with a sniffle. What was there to do, now? She couldn't go back to Taylor just yet – another wave of tears was sure to come. Obviously Troy was out of the question…

Or was he?

Would a true 'I'm Sorry' change things? Could she really go back and face him when he knew all of her feelings towards the two identities that he held? She felt like she was split in half – the Gabriella that had too much pride to turn around and the Gabriella that had softened up over the past month, the one who wasn't afraid to share her secrets with someone.

Her legs were up and pulling her down the pathway Troy had taken long before her nervous system had decided on anything. They just _went_. The path was a straight shot to the basketball courts, where Troy had told her he usually went to cool off anytime he was overly stressed or anxious.

The trees and fields around the snaking path flew by as Gabriella's mind spun.

Would that criteria count for ticked off, too? Surely he was fuming at her – that dark look in his eyes said everything.

Her breaths were long and pacing, unsure. She didn't know that she completely wanted to do this, but since her body had seemed to decide things for her, she just followed along. It probably looked funny to someone looking out the window that a girl in a figure-fitting shirt and (in her opinion) too-short skirt running along a pathway taken mostly by bike enthusiasts on campus.

She didn't really care.

The winding trail wasn't too active in the heat of the afternoon, whereas many were probably crowded around snow cone trucks and ice cream parlors. Her feet didn't make a sound on the warm concrete as they traveled past the Mathematics wing and the library of the campus and she was only vaguely aware of a few bikers as she searched for one person, and one person only.

The wind whipped across Gabriella's face, pushing against her legs to stop. Her hair was probably in tangles, her make-up smeared, and her skirt in an awkward position, but there are some things that just completely slip your mind when you're relationship with one of your best friends is on the line.

Or maybe it was just the way she did things; she wasn't entirely too sure of anything at the moment.

To her initial surprise, her eyes spotted Troy lingering in the shade of a tree a few paces ahead. He was facing the other direction, standing uneasily, like he was at a point of indecision where he didn't know if he wanted to go along or stay put.

Gabriella slowed slightly along the winding path, wondering how to approach him. It wasn't like she could just go up and say, _"Okay, I got the message and I know you're the person I've been looking for all along."_

Yeah, _that_ would go over well. Was that corny comment all she could come up with?

_"Hey, I know I was a jerk, but I really, really like you…"_

The distance between them was getting ever smaller. A few long strides would have the distance sealed, and Gabriella's heart was fluttering, but not from exhaustion.

_"So, you're Baskethead…"_

He still hadn't seen her, miraculously. Gabriella eyed his posture, hoping he didn't bolt off full speed in the other direction. Only seconds had gone by since she'd first spotted him, and he was still oblivious, caught up in his own internal battle.

One more step… then another… Her feet went on, anxiously making her steps louder than usual.

She took everything about him in – his broad shoulders, sculpted arms, and even the slightly tan pigment to his skin. _How_ had she never taken a second glance at him in high school?

She was behind him now, every trace of nerves gone once she saw Troy's ears perk up ever so slightly at the footsteps he now heard echoing across the path. Her blood was still pulsing hot in her veins, but the adrenaline in her system hadn't quite faded yet.

His head whipped around and Gabriella did the only thing that she knew could get the message across to him – she pushed her head up, put her palms against his cheeks, and pulled him in to kiss him full on the lips.

Troy, taken fully aback by her sudden change in demeanor, questioned if he was having delusions.

No, his fantasies were never _this_ good.

Their lips collided softly, in a swift moment. Nothing around them mattered anymore.

It was when Gabriella's thoughts finally caught up with her that she realized that he thought she hated him. Her mind screamed _'what in the _world_ are you thinking?'_ and also repeated more reasons why Troy was about to pull away, but to her amazement, he didn't.

His hands found their way to her back, eagerly pulling her closer. Instincts took over there, and Gabriella found herself pulling him closer, too. His warmth, surrounding her, was something she completely enjoyed, even if it was scorching outside. Time was standing still as they continued on, the space between them diminishing when she brought her fingers up to his hairline, twirling a strand of his hair. She felt that her heart was hammering embarrassingly loud.

At that point, neither of them really knew what they were doing: standing there in front of the entire campus and kissing each other like they were long-time lovers. Like they didn't hate it other in high school. Like they weren't so confused as to what was going on.

The only thing Gabriella's message was clear to Troy – she knew everything and she accepted it. Troy's eager response told Gabriella all she wanted to hear – he understood. Everything began to go into a hazy, dreamlike state…

Finally, Troy pulled away. Hundreds of emotions seemed to flitter across his face before he could come up with something to do. What was there really to say? _'Wow, you're a better kisser than I thought,'_ probably wouldn't go over very well – first, that she would know he underestimated her kissing ability and, second, would give her the idea that he actually thought about the topic on a regular basis.

Finally, he settled for a more appropriate countenance – one that questioned her sanity. That one usually worked.

He waited while Gabriella searched for words.

"I – well, see, it's – uh," she stammered, trying to form coherent words in her head.

"Awkward?" He offered, releasing his hands from her back. Gabriella blinked and took in everything.

"So that was real?" She responded breathlessly.

"You tell me," he shrugged, slightly bemused. "You're the one that pulled me into that."

"You're the one who kissed me back," she giggled. Troy smiled again; that one boyish grin that she had seen so much of in the past few days. It was the smile that she had grown to adore.

"Maybe it was real," Troy mused. "Care to try again and see?"

Gabriella rolled her eyes. "Smooth one, Romeo."

"Is that a yes?" He asked, a little too eagerly. So, maybe it was a little early, but Troy had to admit, that kiss had probably just made the highlight of his year.

"Well," she sighed, "before any of that, I think we have some_…_" she hesitated, "things to discuss."

"Oh, yeah… that." Troy smiled sheepishly and flickered his gaze around the lawn. He wanted to find a more appropriate spot to talk, because a walkway wasn't the best place to stand when the six o' clock rush hour was sure to be here soon. He could only find the spot at the base of the tree, so he motioned for Gabriella to follow as he made his way into the shadows of the oak.

Troy plopped down onto the soft grass and waited as Gabriella – as discreetly as she could in her skirt – lowered herself down to the ground. She heaved a sigh once more and put her head against the bark. A heavy silence descended upon the two, found completely unprepared on how to begin. What was there to really say?

Finally, it was Troy who found his words. "I really should have told you."

"Yes," Gabriella locked eyes with him, a sudden seriousness to them. "You should have."

"I just…" He reached out, pressing the back of Gabriella's hand into his palm. "I didn't know if you'd be able to handle it all… I was sort of hoping that by slowly getting to know me, you'd forget about Baskethead. About all of him, and just think he was some mystery that you couldn't solve…"

She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it abruptly. What would have she done if Troy had come clean? Probably think he was joking. Except that she wouldn't have held back on her disappointment in him. Maybe this way had been better…

"It was a mistake, I don't doubt that," his rambling continued, oblivious. "But I promise that - "

"Can you forgive me?" Gabriella asked suddenly.

"For what?" Troy stared at her, befuddled.

"For… everything I said back there," she visibly winced, threading her fingers with Troy's at their connected hands, comforting her. "_That_ was the mistake."

"Obviously my response back there should give you a decent answer," he reached up with his free hand to tuck a strand of Gabriella's hair behind her ear.

She grinned, and then blushed again. "Just making sure. But I do have one question."

"Okay, shoot," he scooted closer to her, hoping that she would allow the distance to close. Gabriella obliged, let a smile play at her lips, and lowered her head to his shoulder. Both hearts seemed to skip a beat.

"How long have you known?" She took in a deep breath of his cologne – which seemed slightly more attractive now that she had her head on his shoulder.

"Since the first meeting at the coffee lounge," he admitted with slight repentance and pressed his cheek to Gabriella's hair.

"Oh."

"What?" Troy looked down to see her face, unable to read the emotion in her voice. She didn't seem surprised, just pensive.

"You were so calm that night… If I would've figured it out first, I could've never sat there and just watched," Gabriella squeezed her eyes together. "I said some awful things to you that night."

"You redeemed yourself," Troy assured, lifting her chin up to look her in the eyes and using his other arm to put around her shoulders. "I would've been waiting out at the bus stop forever if you wouldn't have taken the initiative to give me a ride."

"I guess so." She shrugged. A stranger walked by, breaking the two out of the shell of a conversation that they'd been having. They didn't know this person and it was kind of fun for Gabriella to think that this person didn't see her and Troy as 'enemies,' but just as any other couple would be taken for. Even though nothing was technically 'official,' that kiss surely had to count for _something_.

There was a small pause in their conversation. A bird sang an evening song in one of the tree limbs above them, the beginning of a wide variety of bird chirps from neighboring trees. Gabriella closed her eyes and took in everything: the sounds of springtime, the closer on her mystery person, and most of all, Troy.

Now that Saturday was starting to wind down, voices could be heard in the distance of many students returning to campus. Troy sighed and reluctantly took his arm from around Gabriella's shoulders and stretched.

"I think it's time we return," he repositioned and pulled himself off of the ground. "I don't know about you, but I'm starving."

"Yeah," Gabriella replied, letting Troy help her up. She dusted herself off and looked up at the sky, "Taylor's probably agonizing at this point."

Troy's eyebrows rose, "So you two are on better terms?"

"Apparently," she bit her lip. "You know how you explained earlier how you and Chad do this all the time?"

"And you believed me?" Troy laughed, which became even more pronounced once Gabriella was rendered speechless. "That would be a first."

"It seems like there's been a lot of that today," she mumbled, looking off into the distance. "Is it so bad that I really don't want to go back to the real world?"

"This is the real world…" he held out his hand and winked, "just the better side of it."

Hesitantly, Gabriella took it and began walking alongside Troy, while his grin stretched from ear-to-ear. Her unsteady breathing was enough to let anyone know that she was in disbelief. Wasn't this a little soon? Troy noticed, all too soon, from her silence.

Stopping once more and flashing an alluring smirk, he inclined his head towards her already lifted one. Softly, his lips brushed hers. It wasn't a plunge of emotion, like their first had been, but more like a cherry on top of a sundae - quick, heartfelt, and immensely sweet. It was over too quick for Gabriella's liking, but still very nice.

"What was that for?" She whispered, though there was really no need to, their lips slowly inching away from each other.

"You seemed a little bewildered at a little PDA," Troy looked at Gabriella with a smug grin, "I thought that you needed a little assurance that I, indeed, return your feelings. Not like I haven't already made it blatantly clear."

A sheepish grin tugged at her lips. "It's not as much that as this overwhelming feeling that just won't let me believe that this is real."

"Oh, it has to be," he took her hand again and began walking toward the dorms for the second time, with a little more bounce to his step, "I've been dreaming of this moment since I really got to know you – believe me, nothing I can dream up is _ever_ this good."

Gabriella joined him in laughter, before thinking up her response.

"Well," she sighed, "if this is a dream, Taylor's _not_ going to kill me for messing up all the work she did on my hair."

Cheerfully, Troy eyed her tangles curls and laughed.

"We'll see."

* * *

**Since I didn't feel like the events that I originally had planned in this chapter summed up the story very well, and because I'm dreading the conclusion of this story, I wrote a little more to make a decent final chapter (which is more for comic relief than anything). Then, the epilogue will come. I would like to get to 300 reviews by that time, simply because it's something I've never gotten to before. **

**Thanks for reading this... I can't believe how much fun I've had with this story! **


	13. XII: Plenty of Time

**It's almost over! Thanks for all of your reviews. I planned to update Wednesday, because we have state testing this week and sophomores got to get out of school the one day we didn't have a test. But I had a doctor's appointment, and therefor, was over at my grandma's house. Then I forgot until I had a chance to log on today. Anyway, this is the comic relief chapter. I wanted to write a little bit with them as a full group, so this is what made up the last chapter. -sigh- **

* * *

**Chapter XII: Plenty of Time**

"So you were totally oblivious to him until he gave you the book?"

Taylor looked at a nodding Gabriella in disbelief.

"I guess so."

She glanced at Troy, who chuckled and shrugged. "It surprised me, too. But I'm not complaining," he winked at Gabriella, who giggled.

The three were waiting for their food at a booth in the nearby McDonalds – the quickest and closest thing that the college students could conjure up for dinner. They couldn't exactly afford anything else. Taylor wasn't happy about it, since her health studies class had recently revealed the true horrors of fast food, which Gabriella had refused to hear any more of after Taylor's first semester in the class. What goes into her food was something that she would rather remain a mystery.

Taylor had driven the four (Chad was there, but had been assigned to wait at the register for the food) to the restaurant after the initial shock of finding her best friend holding hands with her previous sworn enemy. Well, she also gave Gabriella some grief about her hair, but it wasn't near as bad as the storm that her friend expected. Of course, Chad had already known all of this for some time, but he still liked to give his best friend a hard time about it after they all met up outside the dorms.

A plastic tray smacked across the table when Chad appeared, obviously upset with carrying the food to the table. The three grew silent as they watched him, in slight amusement, slide into the empty seat next to Taylor while he muttered something incoherent about 'lazy best friends.'

They all dug in, trying to find the right size drink that matched the orders and the orders that matched the person. It was easy for the most part – Taylor with her salad (no biproducts), Gabriella with her chicken, and Troy and Chad with different burgers.

They also got a round of hand sanitizer, compliments of Taylor, who never ate out without her trusty bottle of Germ-X. Chad nearly mentioned that the sanitation classes were going to her head, but since he didn't want to offend a person he'd been formally introduced to only twenty minutes before.

"I'm going to feel so guilty about this later," Gabriella groaned, opening her box of chicken. Troy eyed his burger happily, nudging his new girlfriend.

"I'll eat one of those for you."

"I thought coach told us to eat a little healthier," Chad chided, taking a bite out of one of his French fries.

"And this is coming from the one who ordered the biggest thing on the menu," Troy retorted, which then turned to laughter at his comrade's face. "Besides, it's not like he's going to find out anytime soon."

"It won't become a problem unless you turn it into a habit," Taylor replied knowingly. Also in school, her Early Childhood Development class had recently gone over young habits, and nutrition was top of the list. The other three, while politely listening in as she continued her lecture, were trying to get their minds as far away from school as physically possible. Taylor prattled on.

The four grew silent once Taylor realized that they weren't really listening and focused more on eating, letting their minds wander a bit. Taylor and Chad were trying to be inconspicuous about watching their friends, but they were in a losing battle. After Troy finished his meal, he slung his arm over Gabriella's shoulder, and she settled into his side, still nibbling on her fries.

Chad couldn't contain his curiosity any longer, "Does anyone else find it weird that the two of you were nearly about to murder each other three weeks ago?"

Taylor's hand shot up. Gabriella glared at her best friend.

"I, for one, _don't_," Troy said and pressed his face into Gabriella's hair.

"Me neither," Gabriella mumbled her response, trying to ignore her friend's dramatic eye-roll.

"Well, I'm not going to baby sit the two of you," Taylor said sternly, hoping that they got the 'don't make-out in plain sight' message.

"I'm twenty-one years old, Taylor, and therefore, in no need of a baby sitter," Gabriella threw a fry in Taylor's direction. Since Gabriella really wasn't aiming very well, it hit Chad right above his forehead. It slid down slowly, leaving a trail of grease across a stunned Chad's face.

His friends' laughter erupted after the fry hit the table with a _smack_. A few mothers nearby eyed the four suspiciously, and then turned their eyes back to their children climbing on the plastic play sets.

"It's _on_!" Chad hissed, wiping the smears off of his face and picking up an unopened packet of ketchup.

"Not now, Chad," Troy warned, "we're in public."

"Oh, come on!" Chad replied desperately. "She's wearing a dark shirt. A little ketchup won't stain it _that_ much."

"Blue is not that dark," Gabriella defended.

"It's better than the prank Troy wanted to pull on you in - "

"_Chad_!" Troy interrupted, somewhat frantic. Did his best friend not realize that wasn't something you discuss with a new girlfriend? Or any girlfriend, for that matter.

"What?" Chad lifted his palms. "She's going to find out eventually. Why not now?"

"Because that's water under the bridge!"

"No," Gabriella pressed her hand against Troy's arm with a sly smile, "I kind of want to hear this."

Taylor just watched the spectacle, half amused as Troy melted under Gabriella's gaze and half interested in the story that Chad was about to tell.

Troy sighed unhappily and glared at Chad once more before mumbling, "_No, you really don't_."

"Well," he began dramatically, "As you can see, it had to deal somewhat with ketchup, though it was mostly concerning its ingredients. So, during homecoming week junior year, we stumbled upon the cafeteria's year supply of tomato paste."

"Tomato paste?" Taylor raised her eyebrows, piping up from the silence she'd been in.

"Yes, just listen to the story. Don't ask why we were in there, because the details leading up to that are a little sketchy," he continued, slightly irked. "_Anyway_, we thought it would be a good prank to put a little school spirit into the one person I knew wouldn't go all-out for school spirit day…" he grinned slyly, "_you_, Gabriella."

Gabriella smirked back, while Troy sank lower and lower in his seat, growing about as red as the infamous tomato paste. Taylor listened intently.

"We wanted to do something good, because, well, you know. We didn't really like you." Chad laughed at the memory. "We had to get it in a place which you would never expect it – a place you're comfortable in. But we had to make it look like an accident, even though we knew you'd blame us anyway."

"Without a doubt," Gabriella confirmed cheerfully.

"It hit us then – the science lab!" Chad clapped his hands together. "Things get screwed up in there all the time, and Zeke knew how to make a solution from tomato paste to make it _harmlessly_ explode when it was opened. I guess he'd had too many accidents in the kitchen to _not_ remember.

"So we had him set it up. It was fairly easy – we took Coach Bolton's keys while he was at a staff meeting, went into the science labs, had Zeke make the stuff, put it in a jar, and put it on your table so that you would see it when you came in for morning practice. We added a little extra red dye to make sure that you came out Wildcat red." Chad winked and Taylor gaped.

"As you know," Troy interrupted quickly, "it didn't work. It turns out that the fall play needed to borrow some test tubes for a scene and Ms. Darbus snagged up whatever was on the lab tables…"

"You didn't!" Taylor's hand flew to her mouth in disbelief. "Ms. Darbus?"

Chad shook his head, nearly doubling over in laughter. "You didn't let us finish. She took the equipment – jar included – and brought them to rehearsal. You ever wonder why Ryan Evans wasn't at school on the most exciting day of the year? Why Sharpay seemed really irritated, even though she got Homecoming Queen? Why her brother looked really, really embarrassed at the game that night?" He pressed and could barely contain his laughter.

That day made perfect sense to Gabriella and Taylor now – they realized that those things fit together. His absence was explained, even though he and Sharpay were famous for their extravagant outfits on Homecoming Friday. Of course Sharpay would be mad one of her twin outfits was ruined. And, poor Ryan, how the red dye had stained his face and cheeks, tinting them to a rose color. Maybe a blush had accompanied it, but you couldn't really tell the difference days after that incident.

Troy shook his head. "I'm sorry about that," he whispered to Gabriella. On the other hand, she burst into a fit of giggles, too.

"Don't apologize, that's _funny_!" She continued, with Taylor joining in on the laughter. "I can't believe you guys tried stuff like that, too!"

Troy's eyebrows shot up, dumbfounded. "You mean you tried doing something like that to _us_?"

His look of utter disbelief just caused the laughter, which had nearly subsided, to pick up once again. This time, it was Taylor who took the initiative to tell the story.

"Sure, who doesn't?" She recalled. "Our pranks were a bit simpler, but that doesn't mean they weren't humiliating."

"Oh, yeah," Gabriella agreed, also remembering. Two of the smartest girls in school surely had plans of their own.

"Well, let's hear one of the stories," Chad looked between the two, his interest growing.

"How about in the car?" Troy chimed in, noticing how many people were still starting at their group from the roaring laughter that had erupted minutes ago. "Since we're done and all."

"Race you there!" Chad shot up – excited to hear more failed prank stories – and bounded out the door to the car with his Coke in hand. Taylor followed; mostly worried that he'd spill something on her new paint job if he weren't supervised.

Troy and Gabriella lagged behind to throw away the rest of the trash the other two had left on the table. Gabriella returned the tray to the register and the two followed suite out the back door, dodging six-year-old kids and their mothers chasing after them.

"It really doesn't bother you that we tried all of that stuff in high school?" Troy began, a little nervous. "It's not normally something someone likes to hear."

"Not at all," Gabriella replied. "As I've told you Troy, I didn't harbor any feelings for you then. I honestly didn't like you," she snickered. "It doesn't bother me, because we weren't friends. It's actually really funny to me, seeing as both of us tried to humiliate each other."

Troy grinned, reassured. "With little avail, but I guess we did try."

"Yeah," Gabriella giggled for what seemed like the hundredth time that night, "I like hearing stories like those. You and Chad have had some hilarious misadventures."

"I'm very interested to hear what you tried on Chad and me," he stated as they approached the car. Taylor was already in the driver's seat, with Chad perched on the passenger side.

"Hurry up, slow pokes!" He called, itching to hear another story. In response, the two slowed their pace and took longer than necessary to reach the door to the car.

Troy opened the backseat door and held it open for Gabriella.

Chad rolled his eyes. "This new relationship thing where the two of you are all mushy with each other better wear off soon."

"I, personally, can't wait to see how interesting their first fight is," Taylor piped in.

"Taylor!" Gabriella gaped at her best friend. Taylor sheepishly smiled back.

"You have to admit, it's going to be interesting, given both of your histories with each other."

"True," Chad agreed, earning another dirty glare from his best friend. Taylor just laughed and started the car, hoping to avoid the late traffic.

Like promised, Taylor and Gabriella discussed pranks of their own on the way home. Taylor had been right – their pranks were much simpler, but enough to cause enough embarrassment. These ranged from the infamous bra in the locker (which had failed because Troy had replaced the lock the day before) to making one of them sit on ketchup (which didn't work because they could sit wherever they wanted in the only class they shared with Troy and Chad).

Once the group was hoarse from the snickering that went on in the car, they arrived on campus.

"Hey, I had a good time," Chad leaned back in his seat to face Gabriella before he opened his door. "We should all do this again sometime."

"Yeah, thanks for telling us the stories," Gabriella nodded eagerly while she opened her door and slid out.

"Thanks for tolerating all of this, Taylor," Troy apologized to the only person in the group that he didn't know very well.

"I've had worse," she laughed and got out of the car. "Besides, I've needed to get out for awhile."

The group stood around the car, soaking in the last rays of daylight, before someone finally took the initiative to move. Chad and Taylor said their goodbyes, leaving Troy and Gabriella to walk back to the dorms on their own.

"Now I want to hear more!" Troy complained, taking Gabriella's hand while they walked down the familiar pathways.

Gabriella looked around at the spring green trees and smiled, turning around the events of the day in her head. "I know what you mean."

Troy noticed the pensive look on Gabriella's face – how relaxed her cheeks were, how her smile was slightly lopsided, and how she didn't seem to be over thinking things like she usually did. He liked this countenance, because it was so natural. She usually ended up in deep thought around him, and he liked that.

"What revelation are you coming up with now?" He teased, giving her hand a slight squeeze.

She laughed, "I just can't believe we – well, mostly _you_ – shoveled ice cream into our stomachs and watched a chick flick just a few hours ago."

They walked in silence for a moment before the previous hours' events were recapped through Troy's mind.

"Wow, that is kind of amazing," he looked up to the sky, watching the last rays of sunlight filter through the oranges and purples of the evening sky. "But I am glad with how everything turned out."

"Me too," Gabriella agreed, dreading the separation lying ahead were the paths for the two dormitories split off.

Troy noted the short distance ahead as well. "Meet me outside by my truck tomorrow? Around noon, maybe? We can go to a park and… talk, I guess. Or we can go to the movies again. Whatever you want to do."

"I like the first idea," Gabriella smiled at him and they slowed to a stop. She turned to fully face Troy while he grasped her other hand. "We've got a lot to learn."

Gabriella took a deep breath and Troy leaned in to say goodbye for the night properly.

"Well, we've got plenty of time," he replied, their lips inches away from each other as he leaned in to close the short distance.

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**Ready for the epilogue? I know I'm not! It's coming, though. I want to update before I leave on my spring band trip in five days, so look for an update either Tuesday or Wednesday of next week. If I have time this weekend, I'll get on and post it. No promises, though ;) Oh, and I, miraculously, got inspiration for another HSM story. It's going to be short - only about three chapters - but I'm really excited about writing it. It's going to be called _Dancing with Cinderella_. You'll never guess the song it's based off of!**


	14. Epilogue

**I can't believe it's over... I would have had this out sooner if life hadn't really gotten in the way. I'm trying out for drum major, which is requiring before and after school practices. So, I'm busy. Anyway, I want to thank all of you for staying along with this story. 202 Alert lists and 130 favorites... That's amazing!**

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**Epilogue: Eighteen Months Later**

"Hurry up, Troy! We're going to be late!"

Chad's voice drifted through the small apartment, to his best friend's oblivious ears. Troy looked up from his packing to shake his head in his friend's general direction. This was _not_ his favorite way to begin the day.

"I'm on my way!" He called back, stuffing things into his suitcase a little faster.

He was now mentally kicking himself for not packing last night – against Gabriella's advice, of course. He laughed at the face she'd made when she realized that he hadn't even thought of packing for the game until the morning that they left. His eyes shifted from the clothes carelessly slung in his suitcase to the photo of the two of them on his dresser.

He glanced at the clock. Red block letters read 8:42 AM, casting a red glow over his bedspread. He didn't have time to ogle at the picture on his nightstand at the moment.

He rushed to his closet and grabbed another pair of jeans, just in case – one of many habits he had picked up from his analytical girlfriend of more than a year.

Though, they lived further apart now – living in the dorms were somewhat embarrassing for upperclassmen, and they had all moved out to apartments within a year – they still shared that one special science class. Everything was generally the same – Gabriella still excelled in everything she put her mind to, he still played basketball, and their instant messaging screen names were still an important part of their lives.

"Almost ready?" Chad appeared in Troy's bedroom doorway, his own duffle bag already slung over his shoulder and suitcase in hand. He seemed rather impatient to get Troy ready.

"Will you quit rushing me?" Troy snapped, pulling a few more shirts and stuffing them into his back. "At least I packed my game stuff in the car last night."

"You wouldn't be rushing if you'd listened to Gabriella."

"Whose side are you on?" Troy shook his head and started to zip up his suitcase. He did it slowly, just to get on his friend's nerves.

"The one that will get us to the campus on time so Coach won't make us _drive_ to UCLA!" Chad replied, eyeing the digital clock across the room and turning to walk out. "I'll be in the car."

Troy nodded and looked back up on his dresser. Away games always made his a little antsy – he never liked to be outside of his home turf, in a different town, away from all familiarity. Well, that's the excuse he used.

Looking back at the picture of his and Gabriella's beach trip the previous spring break, he smiled. Being away from her was what really made him anxious, but the feeling had subsided considerably after the many away games last year. Nobody could honestly believe that they had kept together after the initial shock of finding out that the two biggest high school enemies were dating. Thankfully, college had a slight maturity level increase, and there were only a few gawking stares.

Everyone thought once the new relationship high wore off, everything would go back to normal. It nearly did a few months into it. Most relationships will go through a nasty bout (and being so stubborn, their anger was considerably higher), but they survived, and he was happy. Once the new relationship high wore off, things turned into this closeness... It was like having that best friend that you never have to get jealous over.

Troy heard the car horn honk outside, which made him jump, and he quickly zipped up his suitcase. As he was running out the door, he paused for a second that he knew Chad had surely counted.

He ran back into his room, grabbed the picture with a smug grin, shoved it in one of the side pockets in his suitcase, and finally went to meet Chad in his truck.

**--**

Arriving at an astounding five minutes early at 8:55 AM, Troy pulled into the parking lot and sent a reproachful look towards Chad. This extra five minutes was five minutes of sleep that he lost.

"You drive like a _maniac_," was the only thing that Chad could come up with as he hopped out of the car.

Troy did the same, doing one last check through his duffle bag to make sure all of his gear was still in there – sweats, jersey, extra jersey, extra sweats, shoes…

He was still checking it as he went up to the bus to stack his bag in one of the piles the team had made in the compartments under the bus. A few people called to him from various places in the parking lot, and he nodded politely, continuing to do his check-over.

"I've taught you well," a singsong voice appeared from out of nowhere behind him and caused Troy to jump. When he turned around, his grin stretched ear-to-ear as he captured the petite girl in his arms.

"Don't do that, Gabriella," he said into her ear with a chuckle while he squeezed her to his chest. "It scares me."

"I was just commenting upon how well organized you are for such a trip," Gabriella winked at him once she was set back down on the ground. "I, myself, am willing to take the credit for that one. It wasn't an easy feat, I'll assure you."

"Yeah, yeah," Troy rolled his eyes and placed his fully checked bag under the bus. "So, I thought we did our goodbyes last night at dinner."

"I wanted to see you off," Gabriella responded with an innocent smile. "It's what we did last year at the away games."

"But you have work," Troy pressed, smugly gleeful that she would skip work for such an occasion.

"Kelsi is going to let me come in late today," she reasoned. "She is a little lenient on letting me give one of her best customers a sincere farewell."

The statement was true, and he couldn't help but laugh. Whenever he had the time, he would head up to the coffee lounge and order his cappuccino. It turns out he had _a lot_ of free time during the hours that Gabriella worked.

"C'mon Troy!" One of his teammates shouted, climbing into the bus and motioning for Troy to follow.

"I guess I'll see you later," Gabriella grinned and pecked him on the lips, smiling as she pulled away.

"Have fun at work," Troy leaned in again and kissed her for a second longer, just to capture the moment. "For good luck," he reasoned.

She laughed, twirling the necklace around her finger that he'd given her for her last birthday. "These three days are going to be borning without you. I have to say, I will miss you this time," she winked.

Troy thought for a second, trying to think of something deeper than an 'I'll miss you, too.' Then, he finally shrugged and cracked her favorite grin.

"Hey, I'm always just a click away," he thought aloud and then let go to follow his basketball team filing into the bus.

With that, Gabriella smiled once more and watched him lope off with athlete's strides in the other direction. As much of a hopeless romantic he was, she couldn't help but feel that floating on clouds feeling after he gave her such a thoughtful goodbye, even though she was sure he came up with such comments off the top of his head.

But his words were true – any time he could sneak a moment alone with his laptop, he'd log on and talk to her. She'd also be glued to the TV all evening to watch the game as it progressed; something she would've have been caught dead doing two years ago. She couldn't afford to follow him to all of the games, but she and Taylor planned to go down with them for their last away game while Troy and Chad were part of the U of A Redhawk basketball team. Being seniors in college hadn't been the bash that had taken place in high school, but a dive into the real world was once again around the corner.

As Gabriella got in her car to drive off to work, Troy's words kept ringing in her head. She didn't know what the future held, but sometimes, you just don't think about that. With a balancing act between opposite careers looming in their future, Gabriella had learned from Troy to just live in the present. You can't always stay ahead of anything – you'll lose sight of the beauty of what's happening now if you do. He might be hundreds of miles away for days at a time, but she knew that she'd survive.

After all, he was always just a click away.

**The End. **

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**Wow... what is there to say now? I appreciate all of you that followed this story - I can't believe that this many people actually wanted to read this. I hope I did the characters development okay. There were points when I wondered if things were rushing or if they were going at about the right pace. Also, I don't know when my next story will be out. Most likely in a few weeks As I said, life is crazy. Typical end-of-year madness. **

**Anyways, I really hope you enjoyed this story. Thanks for reading! **


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